The Marvelous Misadventures of Chihiro Fujisaki!
by Rigze
Summary: Join young Chihiro Fujisaki as he stumbles his way through his high school life at Hope's Peak! Will he manage to find his place in this bastion of a school, or will it swallow him whole? Non-despair AU. Rated for teenage hijinks and language! Various parings!
1. Chapter 1: Why?

The Marvelous Misadventures of Chihiro Fujisaki!

Summary: Join young Chihiro Fujisaki as he stumbles his way through his high school life at Hope's Peak! Will he manage to find his place in this bastion of a school, or will it swallow him whole!? Non-despair AU. Rated for teenage hijinks and language! Various parings! There will be MxM and MxF couples, just warning ya! Dunno who they're gonna be yet though...

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><p>Chapter One: Why?<p>

As I look up at the fortress-like school known as Hope's Peak Academy, I can only think one thing.

Why am I here again?

Why is it that I decided to move away from my home town and my father to come to the city? Why is it that I decided to come to this school where only the best of the best are invited to attend?

Because I wanted to change. I think.

I was invited here because of my skills in programming. I'm not even certain about how they found out about me… though I have a sneaking suspicion that one of the companies that contracted me may have something to do with it.

I received the invitation in the mail one day, but it was only by chance that I ended up seeing it. Most of the mail that comes by the house is junk, because my dad and I usually communicate with people over the computer or with other electronic devices. Just as I was about to toss the pile of junk into the trash, a gold trimmed envelope fell out of my hands. Seeing it was addressed to me, I opened it and quickly read it, almost fainting when I saw the contents.

When I had gone to show my father, he said I should probably turn them down.

"While it _is_ an amazing school…" He told me. "I can't afford to move away from here right now, my job needs me. You'd be on your own if you chose to go there."

I almost listened to him too. I had gone and sat in my room for a couple of hours just re-reading the invitation over and over, memorizing every line.

_Mister Chihiro Fujisaki,_

_On behalf of everyone here at Hope's Peak Academy, I'd like to congratulate you on being offered a full scholarship to our school!_

_We hope you'll join our prestigious school under the well-deserved title…_

_Super High School Level Programmer_

_It would be a great honor if you'd join our establishment! I wait for your response with great eagerness, and hope that you'll decide to take advantage of this opportunity!_

_Sincerely,_

_Headmaster Kirigiri_

The invitation is hand-written in a very neat calligraphy, and I can't help but feel like the headmaster actually wrote this invitation himself.

And that's what made me reconsider. Something handwritten, personalized just for me, made me think that this place _wouldn't_ be like the other schools I've attended. Maybe I'd fit in a little more. Once this thought occurred to me, I rushed into my father's room and told him I was going.

And that was that.

Standing here now, I can already tell that this school is much different than all of the others. It's actually very intimidating, if I'm being completely honest. I grab my skirt out of nervousness and wring it in my hands. I had almost considered actually dressing like a boy… but my insecurities ended up getting the better of me. Again.

I sigh and shake my head. _"Time to go in I guess…" _When I walk into the school, the halls are completely barren. Not surprising really, because the semester doesn't officially begin for another couple of days. I walk over to the office window where an older lady with kind eyes is sitting.

"U-uhm, excuse me miss?" I say, getting her attention. "Would you mind telling me where the headmaster's office is…?"

"Of course dear." She says, smiling. "Jin's office is up on the fourth floor. Would you like me to show you the way?"

"No thank you miss. I-I think I'll be able to find it on my own." I offer her a polite smile. "Have a nice day!"

"Oh, you too dear." She smiles in return. I turn and head for the staircase, but not before stealing a quick look at the school directory.

As I make my way up the stairs, I can't help but wonder what kind of person the headmaster is. He must be a very strong person to be able to run a school as incredible as this… From what I had learned in my research about the school, it's been equipped with the best facilities in the country, outclassing even some of the best colleges. The dorms aren't anything to sneeze at either; fresh food is supplied daily to the school, and it has some of the best recreational facilities anyone could possibly ask for.

At first I had only thought them to be bragging, but the fact of the matter is that it's true… a degree from here will set you up for life.

I clear the last flight of stairs and make my way down the long hallway to the headmaster's office. As I stand in front of the large doors, I take a deep breath and steel my will to knock on the door. Within a couple of seconds, I hear a muffled 'come in' through the doors, and I slowly push them open and peek in.

"Excuse me… I was supposed to meet with the headmaster?" I say meekly. The man looks up from his work and smiles at me.

"Ah, you must be Chihiro! I've been expecting you, please come in." I quickly make my way in and close the door shut behind me, before walking and standing in front of his desk.

"I-it's very nice to meet you … My name is Chihiro Fujisaki." I say giving him a nervous smile. He only smiles wider at my words.

"No need to be so nervous young man. I'm not nearly as scary as I look. Would you mind taking a seat?" He motions to the two plush looking chairs in front of his desk. I hurriedly comply.

"Right, I suppose a proper introduction on my end is necessary huh? My name is Jin Kirigiri, the headmaster of this school. It's a pleasure to meet you." Looking at the man, he appears to be an attractive man in his mid-thirties. He has a tall build, with short black hair and striking violet eyes. "You can call my Jin, , or whatever suits your fancy as long as it's not inappropriate." He writes a few things down and then turns back to me.

"Getting right down to business, I'm glad you've decided to take me up on my offer to join the school." He says, resting his head on his fist. "We only accept a select few students every year, so I'm glad to see that class number seventy-eight will have another friend in their midst."

"W-well," I start with a stutter. "I'm really happy to have been invited… the school does seem very nice so far. I came here with the hope that it'll be very different than the ones I've gone to previously."

He only smiles sadly at me. "I can only hope that as well. Your father has already filled me in about your previous experiences in school beforehand… and I must say that I'm truly sorry for what you've gone through."

"It's fine, really." I say, looking at him determined. "No matter what, I'm determined to make things different this time. I'm sure it'll be great!"

He gives me a firm nod at this, and proceeds to rummage around his desk, before pulling out a key and a flat screen device. He hands both to me. "What I have here for you is your room key and your e-Handbook. That device is programmed with a map of the school, a copy of the school's regulations, and a handy tool that you can turn your homework in on. It can also access the internet, but I'd only recommend using that if you really had to. It's a little slow." He finishes with a laugh.

I eye the device with fascination as I examine it. It's clear with a blue tint, but I can tell right off the bat that it's a very complex piece of equipment. The programmer in me immediately starts running through possible coding setups, before I'm pulled out of my thoughts by his sharp voice.

"I'm going to warn you right now though, do not start tampering with the programming in that. It functions as your school ID as well, so you'd be in deep trouble if you end up busting into its software. Got it?" I figure he's only warning me as a precaution, but I give him a meek nod in response anyway. "Good. Another warning though, it is very sensitive to heat. Please be mindful of where you leave it."

He stretches his arms before he lets out a sigh. "I want to tell you right now, if anything is bothering you at all, you're free to come and speak with me about it at any time. If it's something I can help you with, I'll be sure to do so." He flashes me a small smile, and I smile back in return.

"I promise that I will, though I hope that it won't be necessary for anything too important." I let out a sigh and stay silent a moment, before something occurs to me. "When is everyone else due to arrive?" I ask, curious.

"Ah well, that's a bit of a tricky question." He says, putting his hand to his chin. "Some people arrive before school officially starts, like yourself, and some show up on the designated moving day… but most students here don't actually come here until the day classes are supposed to start."

I widen my eyes in response. "A-are you serious? Isn't this school full of elites though?"

"Oh yes, the very best in the country!" He says, cheerfully. "As it turns out though, most of them are extremely eccentric. Usually the first day of classes turns out to be a wash!" He says, laughing. "That's why we have it set for a Friday, so it isn't too much of a loss."

He then props his feet up on the desk, still smiling at my bewildered expression. "Despite the formal introduction earlier, this school is very… unorthodox. While we pride ourselves in giving the best education possible to our students, the way we operate is entirely different from what most people would expect!"

I can't believe what I'm hearing. I thought this school was supposed to be extremely strict! And here's the headmaster, casually lazing around his desk telling me it's not!? As if he's reading my thoughts, he suddenly speaks up again.

"That does not mean, however, that I'll tolerate any misconduct from any of my students." He says airily. "As long as you follow the regulations as described, you're free to do anything else… breaking the rules will result in severe punishment, ranging from detention to expulsion, depending on the offense. Of course, I don't really think you'll have any issues with that." He finishes, kicking his feet off of his desk and standing.

"Your things are already in your room, waiting to be unpacked." He says, smiling down at me. "Your class got lucky this year, since you've been assigned the first floor of the dorms. It'll be really convenient living right next to all of the major facilities." He extends his hand to me. "I hope that your school life here will be fulfilling, ."

I give him a small smile, stand, and take his hand in my own, giving it a shake. "Thank you ! I can't wait for my classes to begin… thank you so much for this opportunity." I release his hand. "I suppose I'll go get settled in then, if you'll excuse me." He nods and waves me off, telling me that the kitchen is open if I want to make anything.

As I exit his office, I let out a sigh. That was intense! He went from intimidating to friendly so quickly, it was amazing… I pull the e-Handbook out of my skirt pocket and start it up. The screen flashes my name before opening up to a set of menus that are able to be selected. As I make my way down the stairs, I decide to go over the school regulations. In total, there are eleven:

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><p>1. When attending classes, please be sure to wear the proper attire. It is preferred that you wear your school uniform. Do not show up to class wearing pajamas, swimsuits, nothing, only underwear, only socks, wrestling onsies, or anything else distracting.<p>

2. Do not destroy school property without proper reason.

3. Do not assault other students or faculty without proper reason.

4. Do not sleep in class without proper reason.

5. Don't get caught cheating. What we don't know won't hurt us, but what we do will hurt you. A lot.

6. There is no alcohol or drugs permitted on campus, period. If you come back to the campus drunk, try not to break anything and return to your room. Police will be called if you're found to be on drugs.

7. Do not bring large or wild animals to class.

8. Do not bring guns to class. If you're going to practice shooting, please leave your guns in the target practice area or leave them in your room to retrieve after class.

9. Do not eat in class, unless given permission to do so by your teacher. You don't have to share if you don't want to, though people would probably appreciate it if you did.

10. No lewd behavior will be tolerated in school. The dorms are free game.

11. More rules will be added as needed.

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><p>As I finish reading the rules, I scan over them again to see that yes, these are <em>actually<em> the rules! I smack my hand to my forehead. Nothing about these are normal! "_I was expecting things about conduct and respectfulness, but wild animals…? I guess that the eleventh rule has already been used several times, by the looks of it!"_

I finally make it down to the first floor again, and I start to wonder what on earth I've gotten myself into. All of those regulations are way out of left field from the looks of them. _"What do they mean, "without proper reason"? What counts as a proper reason to beat up a teacher? And the tenth rule!"_ I feel my face go hot. _"Do they really let people do that kind of thing here!?"_

Shaking my head to dispel those thoughts, I pull up the map and make my way through the first floor. As I enter the large door the map changes from the first floor of the school to what appears to be the dorm area. How cool! Seeing the hallway that's on my map, I decide to close the e-Handbook down, figuring I could find my room without it.

As I walk through the large corridor, I see the dining hall, laundry room, and a… bath house? I walk over to peek in. _"Yeah, that's a bath house alright…"_ I think amazed. They weren't kidding when they said the dorms had fabulous facilities.

Deciding to continue on, I make my way to a dimly lit hallway with rows of doors, which are what I assume to be the rooms. Most of them are blank right now, except for the second to last one on my right. I walk over to it and see that it has my name on it, with a little 8-bit sprite of me just above it. How cute!

I quickly fish the key out of my pocket and unlock the door, flipping on the lights as I enter. The sight that greets me is nothing short of amazing! _"Oh my gosh! This is even bigger than my room back home!" _I quickly take inventory of the room. There's a large queen size bed against the wall, with a row of drawers next to it, and a standing closet beside those. There is a counter-like area that can be seen from the doorway with a nice table sitting behind that. Plus plenty of room to spare!

I walk farther into the room and see that boxes are piled in the corner of the room, waiting to be unpacked. I then turn to the side and see that there's a bathroom of my very own, which is a huge weight off my shoulders. I don't know what I would have done if I had to use a communal wash room!

Stretching, I decide to go ahead and unpack my things for a lack of anything else to do. I put all of my clothes away in the drawers and closet and make the bed. Once it's done, I step back to admire my work. My bed sheets are dark green in color, and the comforter is a lighter shade of green with leaves embroidered into it. There are two light green plaid throw pillows sitting in front of my actual pillow, with my brown stuffed bunny nestled in-between them. It's a little old and tattered, but I love it anyway.

I finish admiring my work and turn to start the difficult task of trying to set up my computer hardware… but then my stomach growls. My hands fly to my stomach on reflex, and I giggle. _"I suppose I ought to get something to eat before I do that."_ I exit the room and lock the door behind me, before trotting down the hall.

I notice another name plate has gone up, but I don't stop long enough to read the name. _"Another person is here early huh…? I wonder what kind of person they are." _Mr. Kirigiri had said all of the students are pretty eccentric, so I can't help but be nervous.

"_Well… it doesn't matter too much anyway. It's not like I'm going to run into them right off the bat, so I have some time to steel my nerves." _Thinking this, I make my way into the dining hall… and of course I spot the other person right away.

He's sitting with his back to me, head resting on the table. I start panicking. _"Ahh! Why why why! I wasn't ready to talk to anyone yet!" _I wring my skirt in my hands, thinking that I might be able to sneak past them to the kitchen... but that wouldn't help my trying to change.

I decide to go up and introduce myself to this person… albeit a little reluctantly. I walk behind him, and upon closer inspection, he looks like he's only a few inches taller than me. He has light brown hair with a gravity-defying antenna sticking up from his head. I tap his shoulder to try and get his attention.

"U-uhm… excuse me?" No response. I try shaking his shoulder. "H-hey, are you alright?" This seems to get a response from him, as he suddenly jerks to life and sputters a little. I move over to his side and see that he must have fallen asleep… right into a bowl of oatmeal. That explains the sputtering at least.

"Ah man, did I seriously fall asleep here!?" He asks in disbelief. He stretches his hands behind his head and looks my way, finally noticing me. "Oh hey!" He says, smiling at me through the food. "I didn't know anyone else was actually here yet. What's your name?"

But I can't bring myself to speak. Not because of my shyness this time, oh no. It's because of the simple look on his face. He…he doesn't even seem to notice the oatmeal! My hand flies to my mouth to stifle a laugh, but I already know it's futile. My shoulders start to shake with suppressed laughter, and I can already feel the end approaching.

He looks at me, with what I assume is concern... It's hard to tell. "Uh… hey, are you okay?" Unfortunately, this only fuels my urge to laugh, and before I know it I've flown into a full blown giggling fit.

"H-hey!" He says indignantly. "What are you laughing about? All I did was ask for your name!"

"I-I'm so sorry!" I manage to squeak through my giggles. "I-I don't mean to be rude when I d-don't even know your name but… I can't help it! Y-you have oatmeal all- all over your face!" By this time I've dropped to my knees with laughter, and he lifts a finger to his face, scraping off some of the gooey mess. His face goes pink.

My laugher subsides and I stand, quickly handing him some napkins. He takes them, still flushed, and wipes off the mess. He sighs and scratches his head. "Whelp, since I've already ruined all my chances of being cool, I guess I'll just introduce myself. My name's Makoto Naegi, class number seventy-eight." He says, smiling. "Nice to meet ya!"

I smile back at this strange boy. "I'm Chihiro Fujisaki, same class as you. It's nice to meet you Makoto! If you don't mind me asking though…" I say, trailing off. "Why did you fall asleep here of all places?"

He blushes again and looks off to the side. "Well it's sorta embarrassing but… I was so nervous about coming here that I didn't sleep at all last night!" He gives me a sheepish look, and I can't help but feel like was exaggerating about the students here.

"I wouldn't feel too bad about it, I didn't really sleep much either." I say brushing off of my skirt. "It's a really big transition!"

"It really is!" He says, nodding. "It's completely different from my old school… I'm so lucky that I got invited to go here!"

"Oh, if you don't mind me asking Makoto," I say, tilting my head. "What's your talent? Everyone here's been assigned a title based off of it, so I'm a little curious." I start suddenly. "O-oh, you don't have to answer that if you don't want to though, I don't mean to be nosy."

"Nah, its fine! But… I don't actually have a talent." He says smiling. "When I said I was lucky, I really did mean it! My title is Super High School Level Luckster… I only got in because the randomly selected me."

"Really?" I say, eyes wide. "I didn't know they did something like that… you must have been surprised!"

"Oh I was! I almost didn't come because I was afraid to go to a school with so many elite people… but they say a degree from here will set you for life. I couldn't pass that up." With a sheepish grin, he continues. "What's your title Chihiro?"

I start playing with the hem of my skirt, looking down. "W-well… It's actually Super High School Level Programmer." I glance up to gauge his reaction.

He looks amazed. "That's so cool! You must be really smart, I could never possibly do anything like that!"

"I-its really nothing special!" I say, waving him off. "You'd be really good at something too if you were doing it since you were little."

"No no, you've gotta be more than really good to get into here for it!" He says, smiling. "You must be the modest type Chihiro." He hits his palm with his fist. "Hey! Wanna go grab something to eat? I guess that's probably what ya came in here for anyway, and my food… well you know."

"Oh sure, but… are you sure you want to eat with me?" I ask, nervous. He's probably just being polite.

"Of course! Might as well get to know my new friend, right? You seem like a cool person." Part of me wants to doubt his words but… somehow I think they're genuine. That he isn't just asking for courtesy's sake.

"All right… What all do they have in the kitchen?" I ask, as we make our way there. "I can't really cook too well, so hopefully a lot of things with instructions."

He laughs at this. "Don't worry about it. They have tons and tons of food in there. Besides, my mom gave me a crash course in cooking before she let me leave, so we should be good." He winks at me, and I can't help but laugh.

"If you say so Makoto!"

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><p>Cooking… sorta turned out to be a disaster. It really must have been a crash course, because not five minutes before he got started, the food caught on fire. Thankfully we were able to put it out, but I decided to take over from there and just make some pasta. Thank god for box spaghetti and marinara sauce jars.<p>

"I'm so sorry." He says over our meal. "I guess I should have paid more attention…" He seems absolutely crestfallen.

I laugh, still remembering the exploding hamburger meat. "It's fine Makoto. We still got food, right?"

"Yeah, only cause you pulled it off." He responds with a laugh of his own. "I'm never gonna cook anything serious again! I'll stick to ramen and sandwiches, thank you very much."

While we eat, we joke around and ask general questions about each other. Makoto has a pretty normal life: he has a sister, gets average grades, and sorta just goes with the flow from what I gather. The one really remarkable thing about him is his optimism. He seems to find a positive in almost everything, which is something I really wish I could do.

"So, Chihiro." He starts. "What was your old school like?"

"Oh… well I've been homeschooled for several years… I used to get bullied a lot." I say, looking off to the side.

"Awh, that sucks. Why would people bother you? You're so nice!" He pauses a moment, tilting his head to the side in thought. "Well… learning at home wouldn't be all bad I think. You wouldn't need to leave your house!"

I giggle at his thinking. "Well, it got lonely at times, but it gave me a lot of time to work on my programs."

"Is that why you decided to come here? So you could make friends?" He asks, tone sobering a bit.

I put my finger to my lips in thought. "Well… that's part of it! But I did it because I wanted to change myself. I-I need to get better with people… get some confidence you know? I'm not great at talking if you haven't noticed..." I say, sighing.

"Really? You seemed just fine with me earlier when you were laughing at me." He retorts with a grin. "I didn't think you seemed awkward at all."

I only shake my head. "Well that was one thing, but I nearly had a panic attack when I saw you in here! I wasn't expecting to see anyone so soon; I was gonna take these extra days to prep myself to talk to people…"

"I wouldn't worry about it so much Chihiro." He says, patting my shoulder. "You were fine with me! I'm sure the others won't be so bad either!"

"I hope you're right. The headmaster told me that most of the students are pretty… unique. That didn't help my anxiety much." I finish, yawning.

Makoto checks his watch. "Holy crap! It's already 9:45!" He says, standing. "I gotta take a shower before the water cuts off for the night. I'll see you tomorrow Chihiro!" He runs out of the dining room.

Smiling in the direction he went, I go to put our plates in the dishwasher, before walking back to my room.

I walk in the door and close it firmly shut behind me, locking it. I take a quick shower, and change into my pjs, before I flop noiselessly onto my bed. I glance over and see that my computers aren't set up yet. "It doesn't really matter though." I mutter with a smile.

Why?

"_Because my worst fear about this place has already been dispelled… Things are already turning out better than I had hoped for! I'm… confident, that I can have a good life here, if I try hard enough!"_

Why?

"_Because I made a friend today."_

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><p><strong>AN: Doesn't Chihiro just make the cutest little protagonist!? I think he does. c: That's why I started this!  
><strong>


	2. Chapter 2: Friends

Chapter 2: Friends.

I wake up with a start when my alarm goes off. I quickly smack it and sigh. Today is the designated moving day for the rest of the students… and I'm so not prepared!

Makoto and I had hung out a lot yesterday. I wasn't originally planning on talking to him because I was afraid I would bug him, but he actually came and knocked on my door. He wanted to go explore the school originally, but he ended up seeing all of my electrical equipment… his reaction was the best!

"Holy crap Chihiro, is that all yours!?" He exclaimed, loudly. "You… you've got all of the latest game consoles! And that TV..! It's huge! And look at all of those computers! How the heck are you gonna set all of that up alone!?"

After saying that, he insisted on helping me to set it all up. He obviously wanted to play my videogames, but I didn't mind… He was actually pretty good at them! But he always ended up getting flustered whenever I beat him in Mario Kart or Pokémon… After a while I just decided to let him play some of my single-player games, happy just chatting with him.

The bad part about all of that though was that I was planning on practicing how to talk with people for today… And now it's a little too late. Especially since headmaster Kirigiri wanted us to help the people in our class move in!

"_I-I really don't know what I'm gonna do…" _I think with a sigh. _"I guess I'm just going to have to wing it. I hope I don't choke in front of my new classmates…"_

I quickly shower and dress, making sure that I look halfway decent. First impressions are important after all! I steal a quick glance at the clock and see that it's ten-thirty. People aren't due to arrive until eleven, so I decide to grab a quick breakfast.

When I enter the dining hall, I see Makoto talking with Mr. Kirigiri. He sees me and waves me over. "Hey, good morning Chihiro! Ready for today?" Mr. Kirigiri sees me and offers a smile as greeting.

I walk over to them and give them both a small smile. "Good morning to you both as well." I let out a small sigh. "I'm about as ready as I'll ever be Makoto… I'm so nervous!"

Mr. Kirigiri pats my head. "I wouldn't worry about it Chihiro. Like I told you before, some of these people are extremely… unique. There's no way to tell how they'll react to you until you interact with them, so I would just go for it." He says, giving me a thumbs up. "Besides, they can't all hate you, right?"

…Is that supposed to be reassuring!?

"You'll be alright Chihiro!" Makoto says, sparing him an exasperated glance. "I'll be there too, so if things go a little sour, I'll do my best to help ya out!"

I give my new friend a smile as thanks, before a voice breaks through the intercom."Mr. Kirigiri, a student is already here and requests assistance." I recognize the voice as the older lady from the front office.

"We'll be right there Miss Yoshie." He turns to us as the intercom clicks off. "Alright you two, let's head to the front. You can get something to eat once you're done helping them."

I'm a little bummed that I can't get anything to eat yet, but at the same time I suddenly feel way too nervous to stomach anything.

Our trip to the gates is a short one, and when I arrive I see a boy standing there, looking slightly distraught. He's tall with black hair and piercing red eyes, and… let's just say that his eyebrow game is strong. He's wearing a crisp white uniform and black boots.

Makoto is the first to approach him, and I follow close behind. "Uh, hey! Is something wrong?" He asks, tilting his head. "Is some of your stuff missing?"

The boy shakes his head. "No, all of my possessions have arrived safely but…" His glance shifts between me and Makoto. "You two… how long have you been here?"

Makoto scratches his head. "Uhm… a couple of days, why?"

His look turns to one of shock, and he drops to his knees. "How… how could this be!? I was certain that I'd arrive first! How can I, the one deemed the Ultimate Moral Compass, have failed to be the one to set an example for my fellow students!?" He starts bawling on the concrete, curling into a ball. "I'm not fit to be enrolled here! Please, just cart me away already!"

Makoto and I stare at him, stunned. _"I suppose this is what meant by eccentric…?"_

I take a few cautious steps toward the crying boy before kneeling down next to him. I gently tap his shoulder and he looks towards me, still crying. I offer him a tissue before I start talking. "U-uhm, the only reason I'm here early is because I came here from really far away… and Makoto's family was going on a trip, so he was forced to come early too." The Makoto part is a lie, but at this point I'm just trying to get him to stop crying. "If we had a choice in the matter we wouldn't have gotten here so early, so don't feel so bad okay? It's just us." I say, offering him a small smile. I glance back and see Makoto nodding wildly at him.

He looks at me for a second before he uncurls himself and takes the tissue, blowing his nose. "S-so… I can still set an example…?" He looks at me with watery eyes, and I can't help but think that he looks like a puppy. With large eyebrows.

"Of course!" I say, patting his head. "You can still lead the way. Just please don't cry anymore okay?" He nods and then stands abruptly, offering me a hand. I take it and stand, dusting off my skirt.

"Very well!" He shouts, completely recovered from his crying fit that happen a few seconds before. "Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Kiyotaka Ishimaru! I would appreciate it if you referred to me as Taka, however."

I stare at him amazed at his turn around before introducing myself. "I'm Chihiro Fujisaki…"

"Makoto Naegi…" He looks just as uncomfortable as me when he introduces himself.

Taka continues, still shouting. "It is a pleasure to meet you both! I hope that we'll get along during our shared school lives!"

I smile nervously at him. "I feel the same… shall we get started moving your things?" I make a grab for one of his bags, but he grabs my arm and stops me short.

"My apologies Chihiro, but I cannot allow you to move my things!" I shoot him a questioning look. "It would be terrible of me to make a girl such as yourself move them! Come Makoto, let us begin! We won't let her lift a finger!"

"N-no really Taka, I'll be fine! I'm not as weak as I look…" I say, biting my lip.

"I insist!" He says, grinning. "I would feel awful if you had to work when there are two able-bodied men here!" And with that, he drags Makoto off.

Suddenly alone, I walk back to the lobby where Mr. Kirigiri is standing talking to Miss Yoshie. He raises an eyebrow at me when I enter the area. "Why aren't you helping?"

I can only shake my head. "He wouldn't let me help. He said it wouldn't be right of him for a girl to work when there are two capable guys already there…"

Mr. Kirigiri thinks for a moment then snaps his fingers. "Taka." I nod, and he laughs. "That boy… I wouldn't feel bad Chihiro, he'd be like that with any girl. You can go grab something to eat now, Miss Yoshie will call for you when someone else shows up."

I nod and sigh as I walk off. I know I should expect to be treated like a girl because of how I dress, but it still sucked when Taka treated me like I was inept… I get that he was just being polite, and most people would be flattered but…still. I sigh again and enter the dining hall.

"_I'm such a child! Not even able to accept what I've done to myself… argh!"_

I walk into the kitchen and make myself a Poptart before I go and grab a seat. As I eat, I can only hope the next people to arrive aren't as much of a handful as Taka was. He seems really nice and all, just really tightly wound. Like excessively tight.

I don't have much time to wonder before Miss Yoshie's voice crackles through the speakers. "Chihiro dear, would you mind coming to the front? Another person has shown up and needs help moving their things."

"Right away ma'am!" I say, quickly shoving the rest of my food in my mouth.

Once I get up to the front, I see a portly fellow with an antenna of hair sticking up from his head. He's wearing glasses and a shirt that seems a little too tight for him, with a gray sweater on top. He smiles when he sees me.

"Ah, hello there fellow student! Have you been sent here to aid me in moving my things?"

"Y-yes!" I manage to squeak. "M-my name is Chihiro Fujisaki. It's nice to meet you!" I say, gripping the hem of my skirt.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well Miss Fujisaki!" He says, chipper. "I am known as Hifumi Yamada, properly bestowed with the title Super High School Level Fanfic Creator!" He then looks me up and down, shaking his head.

"U-uhm, is something the matter…?" I ask, uncomfortable with his weird behavior. He then lets out a short laugh.

"Nothing at all! It's just that you appear to be the typical tiny-and-shy girl character… almost every game has one. Of course there would be one here!" He says, putting his hands on his hips.

I look at him wide-eyed. "What do you mean? I've played lots of games and I've almost never seen any characters like me!"

"Oh yes, quite common in the kinds of games I play." He says, nodding. "It turns out that your type is very desirable among most men."

Not entirely sure what he's talking about, I simply nod. "I-If you say so Hifumi… what should I move first?"

He scratches his chin as he thinks. He then turns and points to a small box. "That one shouldn't be too heavy."

I nod and pick it up. It's actually pretty light. I start walking toward the school, but just then Taka runs out of the building yelling at Hifumi about taking up too much space in the gateway, with Makoto close on his heels. Their sudden entrance startles me a lot…

So much that I end up tripping. Quite spectacularly if I do say so myself.

"Ow ow ow!" I say, rubbing my forehead. That actually really hurt!

Taka then rushes over to me. "Chihiro! Are you alright!?" He shouts, really close to my ear. The then turns back to Hifumi. "What were you thinking when you made her carry something before you even started working yourself!?"

"I was about to grab stuff!" Hifumi shouts, indignant. "She just got a head start is all!"

"A likely story!" Taka says, crossing his arms.

I shake my head. "Taka, its fine! Really, I'm the one who offered to help him-" I cut myself off when I turn to gather the contents of the box I had spilled. My face instantly heats up.

Strewn in front of me is a collection of various pornographic comics, all of which are extremely graphic. My hands fly to cover my eyes. I think I just figured out what kinds of games he was referring to!

Makoto walks over. "Hey Chihiro, what's wro-" His face goes redder than mine when he sees it. "Dude what the hell!? Why'd you bring a bunch of porn with you?"

As Taka freezes with shock, Hifumi crosses his arms. "How dare you refer to my art as mere smut! These are some of the best fanfictions on the market I'll have you know!"

"Fanfiction!?" Makoto shrieks. "Dude, there's a distinct difference between a porno and a fan-written story!"

"It's not porn! It is the fiction of fans, such as myself! What we all want to see but what the creator will never show…" He strikes a pose. "It's my mission in life to inform the uncultured masses of what true art really is! And this!" He scoops up one of the comics and holds it in front of him. "Is it!"

"Nope, looks like porn to me."

"Well who asked you-" He yells, but freezes when he sees the girl who's suddenly standing in front of him. "Waaaah! It's an alien!"

I turn to look at the newcomer. She has short black hair and calculating grey eyes. Right now she's wearing a white collared shirt with a red ribbon tie, and a black checkered skirt. She just shakes her head at Hifumi's outburst.

"I'm not an alien." She says simply. "And that's porn."

"U-uhm?" I say from my spot on the ground. "If you don't really mind me asking… w-who are you?" I look up at the intimidating girl, before she smiles at me and holds a hand out, effectively surprising me.

"Mukuro Ikusaba is my name." I take her hand and she helps me up. "It's a pleasure to meet you Chihiro."

Finally breaking out of his shocked state, Taka yells out. "How did you know Chihiro's name!?"

"It's simple really." She says with a huff. "I've been observing you all for a couple of minutes. You're Taka, the one holding the porn is Hifumi, and the boy with the blush on his face is Makoto."

"R-really?" I squeak. "That's amazing! I didn't even notice you were there!" I look at her in surprise and she smiles at me again.

"I would be worried if you had. As a soldier, I've been trained to conceal my presence. You'd have to be extremely perceptive to have noticed."

Makoto has a bewildered expression on his face. "Really? A soldier? That's so cool!" He suddenly walks up to her. "Does that mean you're really good with guns? Or are you more of a hand-to-hand type of soldier?"

It's a little hard to tell, but she looks to be just a little flustered. "I suppose you could say I'm good at everything? I was invited to this school because of it…" As she says this she rubs her shoulder with her right hand, which has a tattoo on it.

I remember seeing that image somewhere on the internet, but I can't really place it… I guess I'll ask her later if I can't remember it.

Taka quickly shakes his head. "Regardless of all that, we need to get a move on and clear the area for other arriving students! You!" He points toward Hifumi. "Clean up your filth! I'd hate for that to be the first thing someone sees as they begin their school life here! Makoto and I will load the rest of your things into your room."

Saying this, he drags Makoto off towards Hifumi's massive pile of junk. Not knowing what else to do, I turn to Mukuro. "D-do you need any help moving your things…?"

She gives me a quick nod. "I would appreciate it if you gave me a hand. It's not very much since a lot of my things were sent with my sister's ahead of time, but it's still too much for me to take in one go."

I smile at her and sling a duffle bag over my shoulder, which is heavier than it looked. "Oof. What's in here?" I ask her, sliding it higher on my shoulder.

"Oh, I think I may have some of my rifles in here." She says nonchalant. "They're all cleared of course, so there's nothing to worry about."

…Right. Nothing at all.

She grabs the rest of her things and looks at me with a small smile. "I'll be sharing a room with my sister, so I'll tell you where to put that when we get in there." I nod at her in response, and we make our way to her room.

* * *

><p>On the short trip there, we end up chatting about lots of different things. Apparently she had joined a military group when she and her sister had been split up in foster care. After three years had passed, they managed to re-unite after she quit her group.<p>

"By then Junko had already become a completely different person from what I remember though. She had started modeling, gotten in with a bad crowd, and her attitude had completely changed…." She pauses for a moment and sighs. "But that's why I decided to come here with her. I wanted to get to know the person my sister had become, and see if there was any way I'd be able to get her back to the way she used to be."

"Wow…" I say, amazed. "How did you two end up being split apart in foster care anyway?"

"Well… our parents had adopted both of us when we were babies. When they died, there was nothing that legally bound us as sisters anymore so… the court didn't really find it hard to separate us." She says with a frown as we get to her room. "That's why our last names are different. When we were split apart, we went back to our original last names."

When we enter her room, it's clearly divided into two sections of boxes. Mukuro heads off the left, and I follow, propping the bag up against the wall.

"Y-you know Mukuro… that was all really personal stuff you just told me. Are you really comfortable with someone you just met knowing all that..?" I ask after a few beats of silence. She stays quiet for a while before answering.

"In all honesty? No, not really." She says, shaking her head. "But there are a couple of things that made me tell you. For one, I can already tell that you're the sort of person who's trustworthy. Someone a person can confide in. And for another… I felt like I needed to."

"But why?" I ask, tilting my head to the side. There was no reason for her to feel obligated to tell me.

She bites her lip for a moment before speaking. "It wouldn't have been right for me to know something deeply personal about you when you don't know anything about me…" She trails off.

I feel a nervous knot in my stomach forming. "W-what do you know about me, exactly…?" She couldn't possibly know _that_ right?

Right?

"I… noticed when I was observing you all earlier. You're not wearing a bra Chihiro. I know some girls can get away with it but… you're not a girl."

And suddenly my heart stops.

After several beats of silence, I force the words out of my mouth. "How-" I stop for a moment, choking back tears. "How could you have possibly known? I- No one has ever been able to tell before now! E-ever!"

She looks to the side, guiltily. "I hadn't noticed it intentionally but… there's a distinct difference between a female with a flat chest and a male's chest. Most people would have never noticed but… in my line of work it's important to be observant of the people around you." She finishes with a sigh. "I'm so sorry."

I… don't know how to handle this situation. The school year hasn't even begun yet, and I've already been found out!? Why? What had I done in a past life to deserve this…?

I've flown into a full blown sobbing fit at this point, and I sink down to the ground and hug my knees to myself, shaking. "No one… was ever supposed to find out. Why…? Why couldn't I have just lived my life without anyone knowing!? I'm gonna be picked on again, I just know it!"

Mukuro sits down beside me, frowning. "No, Chihiro, they won't. I'm not going to tell anyone."

I look at her, shocked. "Wh-what? You're… not going to tell people?"

She shakes her head. "Like I said, most people wouldn't have noticed it. It's obvious that you're not eager to spread the fact that you're male… so I simply won't tell anyone."

"But… don't you think it's strange and unnatural? That I'm like this? Any other time when I've tried to tell someone about it they'd… call me a freak. A loser." I say, staring at her with teary eyes. "I've had to move so many times because of it… and you don't think it's odd at all?"

She tilts her head to the side. "Not particularly." She crosses her legs. "You're just wearing clothes that suit you. A cute person should be in cute clothes. It's not weird." She states matter-of-factly. "Do you think that you'd look good wearing what Makoto was wearing?"

"Well… no." I say with a quick shake of my head. "Not really."

She flashes me a small smile. "Well then there you go. Besides, now that I know, I can… you know, _try_ to help you out if you need it." She scratches the back of her head. "I wasn't lying when I told you that you seemed like a trustworthy person, and I hope that you would think the same of me… that is, if you'd like to try being friends."

And suddenly my heart stops again. _"She… still wants to be friends? Even knowing that I'm lying…?" _I start crying for what feels like the thousandth time today.

"U-uh, hey!" She starts panicking. "If you don't want to you can just say so, but please don't start crying again-" I cut her off with a shake of my head.

"I-it's not that!" I choke back another sob. "I'm just so happy right now! You… still want to be my friend! Even though you know about me, you really still do!" And before I know it, I'm bawling again. I know it's embarrassing, but I don't care right now, I'm just too happy!

Unsure of what to do, Mukuro brings me into an awkward one-armed hug and pats my shoulder until I eventually calm down to just sniffling.

After a few more beats of silence, she speaks up. "Don't… expect me to do that too often. I'm not an extremely feelsy person, and I'm not super comfortable with displaying affection towards my friends." She cracks her neck. "But, if you ever need to talk about anything at all, you can come to me whenever… do you have a phone?"

I nod quickly and pull my phone out of my pocket and we exchange numbers. I glance off to the side and see that… she has a flip phone. I let out a small laugh and she raises an eyebrow.

"How long have you had that phone…?" I ask, smiling at her, wiping residual tears from my eyes. She says she doesn't remember. "It's just that it's really… old. Haven't you considered getting a new one?"

She lets out a long suffering sigh and rolls her eyes. "I swear, you and Junko are the same. Until this one breaks I'm not going to pay for a new one… it works just fine!"

I can't help but giggle at my new friend's outlook. "Hey, I'm a programmer. It's my job to be on the up and up with what's current in the technology world."

She stands and shakes her head. "Those new phones are too flimsy in my opinion. Junko ends up breaking the screen on hers on regular basis."

I stand and look up at her, a little confused. "They only break if you don't handle them properly. They make really tough cases to protect them… does your sister not have one on her phone?"

She snorts and shakes her head. "Oh she has a case on it, just not a functional one. She refuses to get one that actually works, saying "those aren't cute enough." I swear she didn't used to be so picky!" She throws her hands up in the air exasperated.

I smile at my new friend. She's not an emotional sort of person from the looks of it, but she seems really genuine when she does express what she's feeling… an extremely blunt person to be honest.

"Well, we've been in here for a long time." I say, stretching my back. "Taka probably wouldn't mind helping everyone on his own, but I wouldn't feel comfortable shirking all of my work."

She nods at me. "I'll come and help as well. Things will get done faster with more people on the job."

With that, we head out to the gates once more.

* * *

><p>Once we get to the front lobby, we run into Makoto. "Hey guys, where have you been?" He says, raising a hand in greeting. "You've missed a lot!"<p>

He proceeds to tell us that several more people have shown up. Apparently after we left, a guy by the name of Byakuya Togami had shown up in a limousine. He refused to let anyone but his servants touch his things, and then promptly holed up in his room after they had left.

"Taka tried really hard to get him to come out, but he didn't answer the door at all. As if things couldn't get any weirder, a really quiet girl snuck in and didn't let us touch any of her things either, and only grinned creepily when she caught a glimpse of Byakuya… I didn't get her name." He sighs and shakes his head before continuing.

"After that, we got a few more friendly people. Two girls named Sakura and Hina came together, apparently they're best friends from sports or whatever. Then this guy Leon showed up! Apparently he's a baseball player, but you wouldn't be able to tell by looking at him. Those three were all pretty cool." He nods to himself.

"Wow…" I say, surprised. "I guess we really are getting all types here, huh?" He snorts.

"You're telling me! So many strange people have shown up, I think Mr. Kirigiri wasn't being completely honest when he said they were just eccentric."

Mukuro nods at this. "It's to be expected. Most of the people have been invited here because of a special talent… and the talented ones almost always have their quirks. Some more severe than others."

Makoto tilts his head at her. "You don't seem to be all that strange though…" He pauses for a moment before putting his hand to his chin. "Well no, that's not quite right."

She raises an eyebrow at him. "What do you mean?"

He lets out a short laugh. "I mean look at you, you don't appear to have a single scar!" He says, gesturing to her body. "When you think of a soldier, you'd expect them to be burly and be covered in old wounds. There isn't a scratch on you."

Mukuro doesn't seem to be pleased with what he said and crosses her arms. "Do you doubt my abilities?" She narrows her eyes dangerously at him, challenging him to say something else.

I gulp. _"It looks like she can be scary when she wants to be… No doubt in my mind she's a soldier." _I had better be careful not to get on her bad side.

Frantically shaking his head, he responds. "Not at all! I-I was only saying that you've gotta be seriously talented as a soldier to not have been hit once _and_ still look that pretty!"

This renders her speechless for a few moments before her face goes crimson. "C-come on Chihiro." She suddenly grabs my wrist. "There's probably still people out there for us to help." She then drags me off, leaving a confused Makoto behind us.

Once we're out the door, I stop her. "W-wait Mukuro! What's the problem, why'd you suddenly drag me off like that?"

She coughs, face still pink. "No reason… we were just wasting time in there talking to him." I can't help but feel she's not being honest with me, but I'm not going to mention it now. Especially because there's a person staring at us.

Snapping to attention, I address the newcomer. "Oh I'm sorry! W-we're here to help you move in if you need it." Looking at this person, she appears to be around our age, with light purple hair and purple eyes… which look somewhat familiar.

She shakes her head at me. "There's no need. Most of my belongings are already here, my father had them moved here in advance. I do appreciate the offer however." She gives me a quick smile.

Mukuro stares at her for a moment before talking. "You… would you happen to be Mr. Kirigiri's daughter?" I look at the girl wide-eyed. It would make sense, they look so similar!

If Mukuro's observation surprised her, it doesn't show on her face. "That's correct. My name is Kyoko Kirigiri. Pleased to meet you."

"Mukuro Ikusaba." She says with a nod. Kyoko looks to me.

"My name is Chihiro Fujisaki. I-It's nice to meet you Kyoko." I say, smiling. "I thought your eyes looked a little familiar."

She sighs and shakes her head. "Please try not to link me to that man if at all possible. I'm only coming here for the education, as far as I'm concerned that man is only the headmaster here." And with that she turns and walks off into the building.

"That was… interesting." Mukuro says, eyebrow raised. "It would appear as though her and her father aren't on the best of terms."

I nod, but tilt my head. "I wonder though… why would she come to the school her father runs if they aren't okay with each other?"

Mukuro shrugs. "I'm unsure, but it's hardly any of our business." She walks over to a low brick fence and sits on it. "We might as well wait a while before we go back inside. There may be a few stragglers that show up later than the rest."

I sit next to her and we talk outside for about an hour before Mr. Kirigiri comes out to talk to us.

"You two may as well come inside for now. The next class is due to arrive any moment, it's not your job to help them out." He says with a sigh. "We're still missing about five students from your class though."

Mukuro speaks up. "Junko won't be coming until tomorrow when classes start." She rolls her eyes. "She said something about being 'fashionably' late." Mukuro jeers, using air quotes for emphasis.

He only laughs at this. "I'd expect no less from someone labeled the Ultimate Fashionista. Ah, no matter. We prepared for this after all." He finishes with a stretch.

"Oh right." I say. "You had said something about the first day of classes being a wash because of this?" He nods.

"In all honesty your class did pretty well. Normally more than half of the students don't show up!" He sighs. "But yeah, you both might as well go and grab some food. It's almost three."

I nod and we both head toward the dining hall. After a quick meal, Mukuro and I part ways so that she can go unpack. With a yawn, I decide to head to my room for a nap… but I'm stopped by Makoto.

"Hey Chihiro!" He says, smiling. "Wanna watch a movie? I've got some pretty good ones to choose from you know!"

I smile and nod, sleepiness vanishing instantly. It's good to have friends… even if they are a little strange.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Chapter twooooo. Yay. c: Honestly I was sorta skeptical about making Mukuro find out this early, but I feel like I can do a lot of fun things with her knowing... plus I think the friendship between a person who's emotionally distant and someone who wears their heart on their sleeve is one that needs to happen.  
><strong>

**Just saying.**

**Also it is actually possible to tell someone's gender from looking at their chest, I wasn't making that part up. xP I felt like Mukuro would be observant enough to spot it. Why was she looking at Chihiro's chest? We'll never know.**

**But yeah, that's my piece. See y'all later!**


	3. Chapter 3: Class

Chapter 3: Class

I wake up in a haze. I look around, not really registering anything, until I'm suddenly startled fully awake by my alarm. I quickly turn it off and stretch.

"Today is the first day of classes!" I say happily. This is what I've been looking forward to all week!

I quickly hop off of the bed and head to the bathroom. After I shower and brush my teeth, I walk out to get dressed. I put on one of my favorite outfits: a dark green plaid skirt with a short-sleeved white collared shirt. I put a grey cardigan on top, and I tie a green ribbon around my neck.

I quickly slide on a pair of knee socks and my shoes, and collect everything I need for class… which is essentially only my laptop. I was going to hand-take some notes, but it's just easier to organize them this way!

As I'm putting it into my travel case, my phone starts buzzing on the table. When I grab it and look at the screen, my face lights up. It's a text from Mukuro!

MI: _Wanna go grab something to eat?_

Smiling, I quickly type out my reply.

CF: _Sure. :D Meet me in the dining hall in five minutes._

Clicking the screen off, I stick my phone in my laptop bag and sling it across my body. With one last check that I have everything, I leave my room and lock the door behind me.

I start humming softly as I walk down the hall, happy that my friend wanted to meet up with me. The trip is a short one, and I enter the dining hall to see that there are a few people already here.

A tall boy with glasses is sitting alone in the corner drinking tea, and there's a girl a few tables away staring at him. "_Is she drooling?" _Tearing my eyes away from the strange sight, I glance around to see a few other students sitting together. There's a girl with long blond hair, a boy with a scar down his face and mismatched eyes, and a boy with his hair sticking up in a way similar to Makoto's. I guess that they're second years, because they're already really friendly with eachother.

I decide to grab a seat at one of the smaller tables, setting my laptop bag down next to my chair. I'm only left sitting alone for a minute before I see Mukuro enter the area.

"Hey Mukuro!" I say, waving at her. She nods at me and walks over, slumping down in her chair with an irritated sigh. "What's wrong? Not ready for school to start?" I ask with a worried frown.

She shakes her head. "It's my sister. She was supposed to get here this morning, but she hasn't shown up yet."

"Oh right." I say, looking at her. "Didn't she tell you she was going to be fashionably late or something like that?"

She puts her head down on the table. "Yeah… I honestly had thought she'd only meant not showing up on moving day, but it seems she just _has_ to be late for school as well." Mukuro grumbles. "I just don't get her anymore…" She trails off and looks up at me. "You're dressed well today. Not the uniform, but still good for school. Nice."

I smile at her, fiddling with my skirt. "T-Thanks I guess." I look at what she's wearing, and see that it's the standard uniform for the school. "Didn't you feel like changing your uniform at all?" I say, cocking my head to the side.

She shakes her head. "I like uniforms." She says with a stretch. "They eliminate the need to worry about what you're going to wear."

"Well that's true I guess, but-" My stomach suddenly growls, cutting off my reply. I feel my cheeks heat up as Mukuro looks at me with an amused smile on her face.

"Maybe we should do what we initially came here for?" I give her a meek nod, and we walk over to the food line. I end up getting a stack of pancakes; Mukuro opts for a bowl of cereal.

We walk back to our seats, and just as I'm about to dig in, I notice something out of the corner of my eye.

Something's in my bag. And it's _moving_.

Ignoring the bad feeling I have in my gut, I bring my bag on to my lap. Whatever is in there is squirming around even more than it initially was. I hold my breath, and slowly open the flap on my bag.

What happens next is something that should only happen in cheesy sitcoms.

"Hyaaa!" Something small and furry jumps out of my bag and makes its way into my shirt. I stand up, knocking over my chair in the process, and try to get the creature out of my clothes. Suddenly it starts to scurry around, reducing me to a puddle of laughter from how badly it tickled.

Mukuro stares at me in surprise. "Chihiro, what on earth are you doing!?"

"M-my clothes!" I manage to gasp through the giggles. "Th-there's something in my clothes and it- it tickles!" By now we've managed to attract the attention of everyone else in the cafeteria, expressions ranging from concern to complete disinterest.

I drop to my knees, and manage to get the furry creature out when it sticks its head out from between the buttons near the bottom of my shirt.

Cupping the tiny thing between my hands, I slowly open them to see an orange and white hamster peering up at me. "A hamster…?" It then proceeds to climb up my arm and curl up on my shoulder.

I carefully stand and dust my skirt off, trying not to knock the small animal to the floor. I hold up my hand to my shoulder, and the little creature hops on. "Well aren't you cute…" I say, petting it with my finger. "What were you doing in my laptop bag though?"

Mukuro walks up behind me and taps my shoulder. I turn to her and she points to the table. "If I had to take a guess, I'd say he was the distraction." I look to where she's pointing and see a larger orange hamster eating my pancakes.

"Oh no!" I rush over and scoop up the hamster. "You shouldn't eat that little one! You could get sick!" I scold. I'm not sure if it can understand me or not, but it folds its ears down and looks crestfallen. "Awh… I'm sorry! I didn't mean to yell at you…" He perks up slightly, and hops on my other hand next to the smaller hamster, nearly falling over because my hand is almost too small to hold them both.

I take turns petting each of them. "Where's your owner? They've got to be around here somewhere…" I say, scratching the fur on the larger one's neck.

"It would seem that two of the Dark Devas of Destruction have taken a shine to you mortal."

I turn in alarm to see one of the boys I noticed earlier looking down at me with crossed arms. "I-I'm sorry?" I squeak under his piercing gaze.

He doesn't answer me directly, but he holds out his hand to mine. The hamsters jump on and crawl up his arm to where two other hamsters are perched. "It is most unfortunate that they've shown you their favor… you're now doomed to a life of servitude I'm afraid." He then laughs slightly. "Of course that would be better than any life you could have had previously."

"R-right." I say, not wanting to delve deeper into that topic. "What are their names…?"

"Oho, so the mortal wishes to know the names of her masters? The two who you've already made contact with are known as Sun-D and Cham-P... The two you remain unfamiliar with go by Maga-Z," He gestures to the hamster with a damaged ear. "and Jum-P." He points to the black and grey one.

I smile. "Those are lovely names…" I reach up on my tip-toes to stroke Maga-Z and Jum-P, and they happily lean into my fingers. The boy seems surprised, but he stays silent for a few moments before talking.

"It's been quite a while since the Devas have shown such fondness for a pathetic human in such a short amount of time." He scratches his chin with a bandaged hand. "Mortal, what is it that you are called?"

I quickly retract my finger, suddenly thinking about the proximity of my hand to his face. "I-I'm Chihiro Fujisaki, U-Ultimate Programmer…" I say, trying not to sound as nervous as I feel.

He quirks an eyebrow. "One wise in the way of technology…? You may be of use to me yet." He says with a smirk. "You may refer to me as Gundam Tanaka, be certain to remember it; it is the name of the one who shall rule this world one day!" Without waiting for my reply, he sweeps out of the dining hall.

I stare dumbstruck. "W-What on earth just happened…?" The blond girl and the Makoto look-alike walk up to me, one with a polite smile, and the other with an exasperated look on his face.

"What just happened is that you caught the attention of a delusional animal breeder..." The boy says, raking his hand through his hair. "I'm sorry about what you had to go through, Gundam is… a little out of touch."

"Don't be so rude Hajime!" The blond chides. "You're supposed to introduce yourself before speaking with such familiarity!" She turns to me and curtseys slightly. "My name is Sonia Nevermind, princess of Novoselic. My apologies for my two friend's behavior, I simply don't know what to do with them sometimes!" She laughs a little, but then shoots a pointed look at Hajime.

He rolls his eyes. "Sorry. My name's Hajime Hinata. Nice to meet ya Chihiro."

Flustered, I stutter out. "I-Its nice to meet you both as well… S-so, Gundam is an animal breeder?"

Sonia nods with a smile. "Oh yes! He's really quite fond of animals, but he's absolutely terrible with people. Hajime and I are generally the only ones he will willingly interact with, so it's a little surprising for him to have approached you."

"W-well I did have his hamsters after all…" I say clutching my skirt. "He probably only spoke to me to get them back."

Hajime shakes his head. "Those hamsters always go back to him. The weird part is that they didn't bite you… at all. They generally don't like anyone but Gundam or Sonia to touch them. Everyone else gets snapped at."

Sonia nods her affirmation. "It's certainly true! For those hella cuties to take such a shine to you… it certainly was strange! That must have been why Gundam came up to you." She says, nodding to herself.

"Is that so…?" I say, tilting my head to the side. "They seemed so sweet though."

Hajime snorts. "About as sweet as hot sauce. Those evil little things have bitten my hands bloody before." Sonia elbows him in the ribs. "Ow…! I was being honest!"

She smiles at me. "If you'll excuse us Chihiro, we must go locate Gundam. He often wanders around aimlessly after a dramatic exit I'm afraid."

I nod, but then something occurs to me. "Oh, Hajime?" I ask, stopping them as they're about to leave. "You wouldn't happen to be related to Makoto Naegi would you?" His eyes widen a little.

"Makoto? He's-"

"Hey Hajime, is that you?" Speak of the devil. Makoto runs up from behind him and stands in front of me, practically vibrating with excitement. "It is! Dude, I haven't seen you in forever!" He then tackles him into a hug. "How have you been?"

"F-fine." He says, surprised. "You're… why are you here? Did you join the reserve class or something?"

Makoto shakes his head. "Nope. I'm not smart like you." He grins. "You're looking at the class seventy-eight's Ultimate Luckster!"

Hajime grins at him. "Figures you of all people would get in here by dumb luck. At least your class isn't going to be driven nuts..." He trails off and grimaces, clearly not wanting to continue down that track of thought. "Its good to see that you're doing well at least."

"Well what about you?" Makoto asks, tilting his head to the side. "Last I heard you actually got into a normal class here. How'd that happen?"

He snorts. "Last year when I first joined, the class I'm in now only had fourteen students. I was already sort of friends with some of the people, so Mr. Kirigiri put me with them." He suddenly sneers. "Do you want to know the title he gave me? Ultimate Reserve Student! All of those idiots gave me hell about it for the longest time!"

Sonia puffs out her cheeks. "Not all of us did you know! Just… most."

Hajime sighs and turns back to me. "To answer your question Chihiro, he's my cousin. We haven't seen each other in a while if you couldn't tell."

Makoto turns and looks at me, finally realizing I was there. "Oh hey Chihiro! I didn't know you knew them!"

"W-we just met." I say, slightly exasperated by my friend's behavior. "So you two really are related…"

"Yep!" Makoto chirps. "How did you guess that by the way? Most people don't realize that we are." He looks at me curiously.

I look at him wide eyed for a moment. _"Is he serious?"_ I look over to Hajime, but he has a similar expression to Makoto's, and is expectantly waiting for an answer. _"T-They're serious…"_

Doing my best not to stare at their matching antennas, I glance off to the side. "I-I suppose it's just intuition?" Makoto grins at me and detaches from his cousin, accepting my answer.

He looks past me and sees Mukuro, who's been silently observing us this entire time. "Hi Mukuro!" He waves at her, and she gives a slight nod in response. He doesn't seem to be happy with her response, but he doesn't comment.

Hajime sighs, looking tired. "Well, I can already tell that today is going to be fun." He turns to us. "I'll see you later I guess, we have a delusional breeder to find." He then turns and leaves, Sonia trailing close behind with a cheerful wave goodbye.

Makoto tilts his head. "Delusional breeder?" I sigh and shake my head.

"Let's just say that it's a very long story." Suddenly my stomach growls again. I'd forgotten about my breakfast! I turn back to get something besides my hamster-nibbled cakes, when there's an announcement over the intercom.

"Attention students!" Mr. Kirigiri's voice sounds through the intercom. "You all have five minutes before home room begins! Please make your way to your classes at your earliest convenience!"

After it cuts off, I hang my head and sigh.

"_Hajime was right… today is going to be fun."_

* * *

><p>Mukuro, Makoto, and I make our way through the school to classroom 1-A.<p>

"Hey guys," Makoto starts. "What do you think the other people in our class are gonna be like?" He asks with a tilt of his head. "I've met a lot of them, but there are still five people who didn't show up."

I tilt my head to the side. "I don't think it's a good idea to be wondering about that… the people who have shown up so far have been really odd for the most part, and those are the ones who were following the rules!" I grab my skirt out of reflex. "I-I hate to imagine what the ones who don't follow the rules are like…"

"Well I've already told you a little about Junko." Mukuro huffs. "If I had to take a guess, she'd probably be the most poorly behaved one out of the people left."

I give her a nervous laugh. "Is that something you really want people to assume about your sister?"

Makoto goes wide eyed and looks expectantly at Mukuro. "Junko? Your sister?"

She sighs and grips her arm. "Yeah… she's a bit… wild." I glance her way, seeing that she's really uncomfortable talking about her.

"_I guess she wasn't lying when she said she wasn't comfortable with people knowing what happened." _I think with a sigh. _"Not that I had doubted her."_

Makoto smiles at her. "Oh, she can't be that bad! After all, you're sisters… you're really cool, so she must be too!"

Mukuro's cheeks tint the slightest shade of pink. "Thanks I suppose... but we are very different. You'll see if she ever decides to show up." She then speeds up the slightest bit.

"H-hey Mukuro, wait up!" Makoto starts, and hurries up to catch up to her. I follow suit, not wanting to have to enter the classroom alone.

We get there quickly from our increased pace, and stand outside the door for a moment before Makoto grips the handle and slides it open. The room appears to be a normal classroom, with a great view of the rear field.

"Hey Makoto!" A tanned girl waves to him from her seat, with a much larger girl sitting beside her. He says a quick goodbye to us before heading over to talk to them.

I turn to Mukuro. "Hey, where do you want to sit?" She shrugs, and I sigh. Looking around, I see a seat with a nice view of the field on the second row. I quickly walk over and put down my things, and she sits in the desk in front of mine.

She sits with her back to the window and turns to me, eyebrow raised. "I would have taken you to be the kind of person to sit in the front."

I shake my head. "N-No, I wouldn't want to bring too much attention to myself by doing that…" I say with a blush. "The teacher always calls on people who sit up front."

She laughs slightly. "I could have sworn that it was the people in the back who were called on the most."

"Really?" I say, curious. "I haven't been to a public school for a while, but-" I cut myself off when my stomach growls a lot louder than necessary. I bury my face in my hands.

"You didn't actually get to eat any of your pancakes did you?" She says, slightly worried. I shake my head. She starts to dig in her bag and pulls out a bag of nuts and hands it to me. "I was afraid of that, so I grabbed these when you were talking to Makoto's cousin."

I look up at her with teary eyes. "R-really…?" I lean up in my seat and hug her, catching her by surprise. "Thank you so much Mukuro! You're a great friend!" I let her go and open up the bag, stuffing a few nuts in my mouth.

She shakes her head, slight smile on her face. "No problem I guess…?"

As we continue to talk, more students filter in until the room is near full. Makoto comes and sits next to me just as the teacher walks in.

"Alright guys, shut up and sit down." He says with a yawn. After everyone's seated, he starts again. "Call me Shirabe. I'll be supervising your homeroom class." He appears to be in his late twenties, and is wearing a turtle neck, camo pants, and a long green coat. He's wearing glasses, and has what appears to be pocky sticking out of his mouth.

He strides over to the teacher's desk in the corner and flops down in the chair, kicking his feet up on the desk. "This is the class where you basically do whatever you want. I'll pick a representative from you lot, and they'll be in charge of deciding what your class does for the period."

Taka immediately raises his hand. "I volunteer to be Representative Mr. Shirabe!"

"Fine, go nuts." He says waving him off. "But don't add the mister to the front of my name, I'm not that old yet." He then proceeds to crack open a newspaper and begins reading.

Grinning, Taka walks and stands behind the podium. "Good morning my fellow classmates!" He shouts. "Because this is our first day, I'd like for us to introduce ourselves to each other properly!"

A boy with orange hair and piercings speaks up. "Why? We've all basically met right?"

"While that is true, I feel like it may be best for all of us to gain a deeper understanding of each other! We're going to be together for a long time you know-" He's cut off by the door slamming open.

"Whoops, that was a lot harder than I meant it to be!"

I turn to look at the door where a scruffy looking man is standing. Behind him is a girl dressed in gothic clothes. She brushes past him and enters the room.

"Lovely first impression." She says with an overly sweet smile. "Why is it that the first person I meet from my class must be a dirty brute?"

"H-Hey!" He yells. "I'm not dirty! I shower every day!" He then turns and smells his armpit. "I _so_ do not stink…"

"Hold it!" Taka yells, pointing at the two of them. "What on earth do you think you're doing!? You're late!" He crosses his arms. "How do you intend to explain yourselves!?"

The girl plays with one of her twin curls. "I had a tournament I had to participate in." She replies nonchalant.

The guy scratches his chin. "I sorta forgot the move in day was yesterday…"

Taka looks about ready to burst. "Unacceptable!" He turns to Shirabe. "Are you not going to give these two slackers detention!?"

He glances up from his paper. "It's the first day. I'll give em a break." He then continues to read, leaving a dumbstruck Taka staring at him.

The girl claps her hands together. "Wonderful! I suppose I'll just find my seat then…"

Taka quickly recovers however. "Not yet!" He steps down from the podium and gestures for the girl to go up. "We were just about to begin introducing ourselves, why don't you start us off?"

They stare at each other for several beats of tense silence before the girl sighs. "If I must." She slowly makes her way up to the podium before she turns towards us and begins to speak.

"My name is Celestia Ludenberg, Ultimate Gambler." She says with a small curtsey. "It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Makoto quirks an eyebrow. "The Queen of Liars right?"

"Oho, so my reputation precedes me." She puts her hand to her mouth. "Yes, that is one of the many titles I've earned."

I look at him confused. "Queen of Liars?"

He nods. "I did my research on a couple of potential students who were coming; she was one of the ones I could actually find stuff on. There are rumors that she's cleaned out some of the best gamblers in the underground, raking in over a million dollars in a single game… Plus, not a single person knows her real name!" He whispers to me. "She's not the kind of person you want on your bad side."

I nod with a gulp. It looks like someone scary has shown up…

"Well?" Taka says, crossing his arms. "What else?"

"Oh, I'm supposed to say more?" She says, tilting her head innocently.

"Of course!" He exclaims. "Give us something else! Do you have any family? Hobbies? Interests?"

She puts her finger to her lips. "I… have a cat. His name is Grand Bois Chéri Ludenberg. I also enjoy European culture." She turns to taka with a huff. "May I be excused now?"

Sensing that was all he was going to get out of the girl, he gives her a curt nod. He then turns to the scruffy man. "You're up next!"

The man nods and saunters up to the podium. "What's up guys, my name's Yasuhiro Hagakure! But you all can call me Hiro." He scratches his chin. "I have a mom, and I like playing videogames."

"Can I ask a question?" The tan girl says, raising her hand. "What's your talent?"

Hiro slams his hands down on the podium, making everyone jump. "An excellent question!" He stands to full height. "I am…" He takes a dramatic pause before pulling out a glass ball. "The Ultimate Clarivoyant!"

The room remains completely silent for a few minutes before Mukuro raises an eyebrow. "…A fortune teller?"

"Correct!" He exclaims, raising the crystal ball high in the air. "My predictions come true about thirty percent of the time! I can give you a free reading if you'd like!"

Mukuro immediately shakes her head. "Not necessary." He looks crestfallen, and steps down from the podium.

Taka pats his back and nods. "A very nice introduction! Now, who's next!?"

The tan girl frantically waves her hands in the air. "Oh oh me! Pick me!" Taka nods at her and she steps to the front. "Hi everyone! My name's Aoi Asahina, but everyone just calls me Hina! I'm here with the title Ultimate Swimmer!" She flashes a peace sign. "I love donuts, and it's probably going to take me a long time to remember your names! I also have a little brother named Yuta!"

Taka nods at her. "Very well, why don't you pick who goes next?"

She peers across the room with narrowed eyes, when suddenly the door slides open.

"Helloooo everyone!" A very loud blonde walks in, hair done up in twin tails and an _extremely_ doctored uniform. It's buttoned so that it shows ample amounts of cleavage with a skirt that barely reaches mid-thigh. She's wearing heavy makeup that emphasizes her piercing blue eyes. "So sorry that I'm late! It took my stylists so long to make this uniform even remotely acceptable! But there's no need to worry now, Ultimate Fashionista Junko Enoshima is at your service!"

Taka looks at her scandalized. "A-acceptable!? That is by far the definition of acceptable! Does that even count as a skirt anymore!?"

Ignoring him, the blonde scans the room until her eyes fall on Mukuro. "Hey sis!" She grins and walks over, hugging Mukuro so that her head is stuck in between her breasts. "Figures that you'd be a square and get here early!"

Mukuro's reply is muffled by her sister's chest. "Hah? You're gonna have to speak louder!" She says, grinning down at her. Mukuro shoves her sister off.

"I said," She says with a glare, attempting to catch her breath. "That I wasn't early, you're just incredibly late!"

Junko crosses her arms in a pout. "_Fashionably_ late sis!"

Looking at the pair, I think I get why Mukuro said that they were worlds different. I throw a couple more nuts in my mouth to stifle a laugh. Junko turns and glares at me.

"Whatchu snorting about pipsqueak?" She says, standing at full height.

I frantically shake my head. "I-I didn't snort! I… was just eating my breakfast…"

She raises a perfectly groomed eyebrow at me. "I'm pretty damn sure I heard a snort." She grins maliciously at me. "Are you saying I'm lying…?"

Junko had done a complete one-eighty from how she was just minutes ago. There's a crazy gleam in her eye that's just begging me to say something else. Against my better judgement, I try to stand by my innocence.

"I- But I-, I really didn't snort at you…" I say, clutching my skirt. Mukuro looks on with a torn expression, as if she were debating on whether or not to call out her sister's poor behavior.

"So you _are_ calling me a liar… I don't really like being called names see." She punctuates her sentence with a sharp click of her nails on my desk. The whole room is observing us in a tense silence. Suddenly she smiles in an overly-saccharine way. "I really think you ought to just apologize to me. Get on your knees and beg for forgiveness, and I _may_ forgive you."

I can't force any words out. Junko sneers. "Are you stupid _and_ deaf? Get on your knees…" She slams her foot on the ground and crosses her arms. "And beg!"

I'm left frozen fear, tears welling in my eyes. Just as she's about to lay into me again, a new voice cuts in.

"I really think you may want to leave that chick alone, bitch."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Oh dear.**

**Sorry this took so long guys. Christmas prepping has been a bitch. xP I should get back to quicker updates after the holidays.**

**But yeah, enjoy!**


	4. Chapter 4: Class?

Chapter 4: Class…?

I look over to the door where the voice came from. Standing there is an extremely tall and buff guy, glaring at Junko from across the room. She laughs at the newcomer.

"Oh this is just a riot! They let _you_ in here?" She sneers at him, but there's a slight tremor in her voice. "I guess they really must be desperate for students if they're letting gang leaders in here…"

Looking at him, he does look like the type of guy that would be the head of a gang. His hair is styled into a pompadour, and his glare is even more intimidating than Junko's. _"At least it isn't directed at me…"_

He only glares harder at her snide comment. "I was gonna say the same about letting a psycho bitch like you in. You don't know when to fucking quit do you?" He cracks his neck and walks toward us, Junko shrinking back a little as he does. I was expecting him to get in her face, but instead he flops down in the desk behind me, making me jump. I glance back to see him still glaring at her. "Just back the hell off. I bet you don't even know this chick's name, and you still decided to cause a fucking scene."

Junko fumes at his attitude. "Oh please! You don't even know what she did!" She crosses her arms and flares her nostrils. "Don't comment on something you're not a part of!"

"Get over yourself." He growls. "I know you well e-fucking-nough to guess that you picked a fight with her." He gestures towards me. "Or are you gonna tell me she's the one who came up to you and started mouthing off? I don't fucking buy it."

"Oh, why don't you just fuck off you stupid little hood rat!" She flips him the bird. "You don't know shit! No wonder that little twat left your gang!" A vein becomes visible on his forehead, and he looks ready to put her through the wall. By some miracle he opts to stay silent. "I totally saved her a lot of fucking trouble-"

Shirabe picks this moment to finally intervene. "That's enough Junko." He stands and saunters over to her, stern look on his face. "I'm by no means a strict person, but you took it way too far young lady. You and I are going to the headmaster's office." She starts to reply, but he glares and cuts her off. "Now."

Mumbling a several curses under her breath, Junko stalks out of the room with Shirabe hot on her heels. Before he leaves, he turns to me. "Sorry you had to go through that little lady. I'll try to straighten her out for you." He produces a box of pocky from his coat and hands it to me and nods before he quickly tells Taka to look over the class and leaves, slamming the door shut behind him.

Several moments of tense silence pass by before Taka awkwardly clears his throat. "Now that the trouble maker has been… taken care of, I suggest we all continue with our introductions!" He scratches awkwardly at the back of his head. "Are there… any takers?"

No one answers for a while, but eventually Kyoko raises her hand. "I'll go up next."

As she introduces herself to the class, my stomach finally drops from my throat. _"I didn't honestly think that I'd have this issue right off the bat…"_ I hesitantly open up the box of snacks Shirabe had given me and put one in my mouth. _"If it weren't for that guy, I'm certain she would have made me get on my knees… or worse." _

I'm broken out of my thoughts by Taka's piercing voice. "A splendid introduction to get us back on track! Now then, I do believe I'll introduce myself next!"

I absent-mindedly munch on the snacks while the next few introductions occur. After Taka finishes, Makoto volunteers to go next, with Hifumi following soon after. As he rambles on about the greatness of the two-dimensional, I hear a loud growl from behind me.

Glancing back, I see the guy who saved me with a faint blush on his tanned cheeks currently staring intently out the window. _"Is he… hungry?" _I take a quick look around the room and see that no one else seemed to have noticed it, most falling asleep or listening to Hifumi with slight disgust.

I gather up my nerves and turn fully to the boy, holding up the box of snacks to him with a slightly shaky hand. "U-Uh, hey…" I whisper, getting his attention. "D-do you want some?" I ask, hoping my face isn't as red as it feels.

He hesitates for only a moment before quickly nodding and grabbing a couple of the sticks, promptly shoving one in his mouth. "Thanks girlie." He says, shooting me a grin. "Saved my ass."

I shake my head. "Not nearly as much as you saved mine." I give him a small smile, nervous knot in my stomach dissipating slightly. "T-Thanks for that by the way, she was honestly one of the scariest people I've met in my life…"

He snorts, scratching his temple. "You 'n me both. She was the last person I fucking wanted to see here…" He quickly changes the subject while biting into another snack. "So, what's yer name?"

"O-Oh, I'm Chihiro Fujisaki…" I say, suddenly nervous all over again. "I-It's very nice to meet you." He looks at me silently for a moment before his face breaks out in a grin.

"No need to be so nervous girlie… I'm not as scary as I look, honest!" What I saw earlier sort of contradicts that, but at least he seems to be okay with me. He actually seems like a really nice person! Without pausing, he continues on. "So kill that stuttering bull you got going on, alright?"

"I'll try…" I say, scratching my cheek slightly. "But it's not really because I think you're scary or anything. I'm just not used to people."

He seems surprised at my words. "You… don't think I'm scary?" His cheeks tint pink again, and he looks away. "That's really fucking weird ya know."

"It… is?" I say, suddenly worried.

"Uh, yeah?" He says, a little snarky. "I'm big, mean, loud, and I cuss like a fucking sailor. Most people, chicks like you especially, turn tail and run when they see me comin." He sighs a little. "So yeah, it's pretty damn weird."

"B-But…" I start, clutching my skirt. "You helped me out when Junko was harassing me. You're obviously not a bad person, so… I don't really think there's any reason to be afraid of you." I look him dead in the eye as I say this, which catches both him and I off guard. I refuse to break my gaze though.

He stares at me stunned for a while before he finally finds his voice. "…Ya know, you're sorta strange. In a good way I mean." He grins suddenly. "Ya know what? I like you! I think I've found my very first ladybro here!"

I stare at him incredulously, and he only laughs and continues. "I'm serious. You seem like a pretty cool chick. Most of the time, the broads I get involved with are… well, ya know, loud." He scratches the back of his head. "So whaddya say, wanna try being friends?"

Shocked that he'd actually want someone like me as a friend, I only manage to nod dumbly. He grins at me and appears like he's going to say something else… but I turn away when I hear someone loudly clearing their throat. Taka is looking down at us with a stern expression on his face.

"You two!" He shouts, noticeably irritated. "What on earth do you think you're doing!?"

"Hah? We were jus eating some snacks." My new friend says, matching his irritation.

"Not that! You were talking during Hifumi's introductory speech!" He crosses his arms. "That was incredibly rude! How do you intend to explain yourselves?"

I start to tear up for what seems like the thousandth time today and clutch my skirt, unable to look Taka in the eye. My newfound friend sees this and immediately flips Taka the bird. "Take a look around twat rocket!" He gestures to everyone else in the room. "Do you see anyone at all paying attention to lardo's fetish speech? No! Why the hell haven't you kicked him off the podium yet?"

Taka simply crosses his arms. "I was listening intently to what my classmate had to say! As amoral as it is, it's our duty as his classmates to learn about him and attempt to be friends!"

"Even though he's flashing porn at us?" He says, pointing at the boy in question. Said boy immediately hides the smut in question behind his back, but not quickly enough. Taka lets out a howl of mortification before going over to him and chewing him out harder than he had us.

After confiscating the lewd comic, Taka sighs. "How could you have not learned your lesson from the last time?! …Oh well, it doesn't matter! You!" He points to the boy behind me. "Come up here next!"

"Why the hell should I?" He crosses his arms indignantly. "I was sorta having a conversation over here!"

Taka doesn't say anything, but he simply keeps staring at the boy with his arms crossed until he finally groans. "Augh, fine! I'll do the fucking introduction alright?" He trudges up to the podium and takes his place, cursing softly under his breath.

"Alright… Name's Mondo Owada." He scratches the back of his head. "You all prolly heard that bitch say this, but I'm here 'cause I'm the best damn gang leader there is."

I look up at him, having just heard his name for the first time. _"So his name is Mondo…"_ I smile to myself. _"I think it suits him."_ I quickly turn my attention back to him, pushing those thoughts out of my head.

He looks toward Taka with a look that screamed "Am I done yet?", but Taka simply waves him on. "Fine… My motorcycle is one of the best damn one's you can get. It's a Kawasaki with a twin motor, and basically rides like a fucking dream… Ya really can't get one better than that!"

Without waiting for Taka's approval, Mondo heads back to his seat behind me and flops down with a sigh. Taka doesn't object, and simply calls up Mukuro. She starts her introduction apologizing for her sister, but I stop listening when Mondo starts talking to me again.

"Damn, I fucking hate introducing myself like that. What a pain…"

I shake my head at him. "I think you did pretty good… You seemed really excited when you were talking about your motorcycle." I shoot him a small smile, and he grins.

"I always get excited when I talk about my hog. You ever been on a motorcycle before? It's one of the best damn thrills you'll ever experience!" He looks like he's about to set off on a rant about how great motorcycles are, but Taka shoots us a pointed look and Mondo flips him off again. "Whatever… we better stop talking now so the princess over there doesn't get his panties in a bunch." Taka looks absolutely mortified at Mondo's name calling, but he doesn't comment.

I turn my attention back to the podium just in time to see Mukuro stepping down and heading back toward me. I smile at her a little, and she gives me a shaky one back. Seems like she isn't comfortable with what her sister did earlier, not that I blame her for it.

"A splendid introduction Mukuro!" Taka turns back to the rest of the class. "Who should go next?"

* * *

><p>The rest of the introductions go smoothly, with me learning the names of the last few people I wasn't acquainted with. The two I had seen in the cafeteria this morning are Byakuya Togami and Toko Fukawa, both of which aren't personable in the least. Getting them to talk was a near-miracle… and one I'd not like to happen again, if I'm being honest. Byakuya seems like a stuck up jerk from what little he said, and Toko… was extremely strange.<p>

The last two, Leon Kuwata and Sakura Ogami, weren't nearly as bad. Sakura is a world-class martial artist and is very level-headed. Apparently she and Hina are best friends, though she didn't specify how they met. Leon… was a little strange. He had gotten in here because of his skill in baseball, but from what he said he sounded like he hated the sport… and he really didn't look the part at all.

"Alright!" Taka says after Leon finishes. "Last but not least… Chihiro, if you'd be so kind!"

I give him a stiff nod, and shakily make my way up to the podium. Once I get up there, I opt to sit in the chair behind it so that more than just my head is visible. I fist my hands in my skirt and take a deep breath. "M-My name is Chihiro Fujisaki… I-I was invited here because of my skills in programming…"

Before I have a chance to say anything else, Hina darts her hand up into the air. "What do you mean by programming?"

Not expecting a question, I pause for a moment in panic. "Ah? …W-well, I work and code different programs into computers and other technology."

She tilts her head to the side in confusion. "I… don't get it."

Before I can clarify, Byakuya scoffs. "She means that she makes computers and the software inside them work. Are you a complete moron?"

She outwardly glares at him. "Hey, I'm not a moron! Where do you get off saying that to someone you just met!?"

"I'm simply saying what I observed. I'm certain most everyone else understood what programming meant." He crosses his arms and glares back at her.

"Oh, um…" I start, trying to diffuse the situation. "The term programmer can apply to a lot of things…"

He only snorts again. "No, it can't. You can program different things, but to program something is to program something. Stop trying to defend her stupidity."

"B-But, she… you can't call her stupid from one thing that she's said-"

"I can actually. Anyone could tell she's only here because of her swimming capabilities, not for anything that's intelligent." He smirks at me slightly and pushes up his glasses. "You really should just stop talking now… you're only making yourself look dumb by defending her."

I feel tears spring up in my eyes, but I don't say anything and simply look down. Oh how I want to tell him that he's wrong, that I'm just doing what's right… but my mouth refuses to form the words. I take a deep breath to try and force them out, but suddenly Mr. Kirigiri's voice chimes in through the intercom.

"Attention students!" He starts with a sigh. "As usual, there have been excessive absences today. I was planning on having the students who bothered to show up continue with class as usual, but something has come up that requires the staff's attention. From this point, classes are officially canceled. Don't break any rules, and have a nice weekend!"

The intercom cuts off as suddenly as it had come on, and it only takes a moment for everyone to process what he'd said.

"Although it's unexpected…" Taka sighs, breaking the silence. "He must have had a good reason. No matter! I'll simply study on my own!"

As he rushes out of the room, I walk back to my seat to grab my laptop, grateful for the interruption. "It's a good thing that didn't escalate…" I mumble with a frown. "I dunno if I could have stood up to him…"

"Hey, Chihiro?" Mondo says, making me jump. "You alright? That guy was kind of being a dick."

"O-Oh, I'm fine!" I say, waving him off. Of course I'm lying through my teeth, but I'd hate to unload my confidence issues on someone I just met. It doesn't feel right. "Really, it's not a big deal."

He doesn't seem to buy it fully, but he nods anyway. "If ya say so. I'll see ya around girlie, I got stuff to set up." I quickly say goodbye, and he turns away with a wave. I sling my laptop bag over my shoulder and quickly exit after him, wanting nothing more than to hole up in my room for a while.

* * *

><p>Once I get to the dorm area, I'm stopped by Mukuro.<p>

"Ah, Chihiro, do you mind if I… talk with you in your room for a bit?" She says, rubbing her arm.

I nod slightly. "No, I don't mind. Let's go?" She nods and follows me to my room, not speaking until we're both inside and I have the door shut behind me.

"L-Look, Chihiro… I really want to apologize for what happened. Junko… she's very volatile, if you hadn't noticed. I'm not sure why she snapped at you like that…" As she says this she looks completely ashamed, as if she were the one who had done it to me.

I shake my head at her. "It's nothing you need to apologize for Mukuro. You didn't do anything!"

"But that's just it!" She bites out. "Junko was clearly in the wrong, and yet… I didn't do anything to help you! I just sat there…" She growls in frustration. "If that guy hadn't shown up, who knows what would have happened!"

I look at my friend with sad eyes. "Mukuro… I don't blame you for what happened. Junko is the one who did those things to me. If you had intervened, she would have probably gotten mad at you too. So please don't beat yourself up for what happened, alright?"

If only to appease me, she nods a little. "I'll try not to…but I still can't help but feel guilty." She plops down on my bed with a heavy sigh. "You're way too kind for your own good you know."

I giggle at her remark. "Just because I don't blame you for your sister?"

She scratches her head. "Well… not just that. I'm saying it from what I observed of you today." I stare at her in confusion and she continues. "Like earlier this morning with that fiasco at breakfast. Instead of yelling and getting angry at that boy and his hamsters like most people would, you just lightly scolded them and made friends out of the boy and his companions."

I bite my lip and look off to the side. "W-Well, I wouldn't say we're friends but-"

"But you're probably going to be." She says, cutting me off.

I shoot her an exasperated look. "Maybe… but still! How does that make me too kind?" She sighs and shakes her head.

"I don't know…" She lays her back on my bed. "It's just easy to tell that you're a gentle soul I guess. You're the type of person where someone can tell before talking to you that you're… well, nice. It's just your presence." She glares at the ceiling a little. "…Some people might mistake that for weakness."

I kick at the ground a little. "No… it wouldn't be a mistake. I really am weak… Why do you think I dress like this?" I flop down on the bed next to her. "I told you before I was bullied for how I am… but the whole reason I started dressing like this in the first place is because I'm so weak. 'It's alright for girls to be weak right?' 'They'd leave me alone if I was a girl right?' That's what I thought… but I was wrong. Once I tried to get stronger, to tell people I was actually a boy… they bullied me even worse than before. So I just stayed like this, because it was easier." I wipe away a few tears, and Mukuro stays silent for a while just processing my words.

"…I see. So, why didn't you just wear boy clothes when you came here?" She says, turning her head towards me. "Wouldn't that have been the perfect time to change?"

"It would have been… but these clothes are a sort of security blanket for me now. I don't really feel comfortable in anything else." I let out a shaky sigh. "Even if I did, people would definitely make fun of me for how small I am. It's… not really normal for a boy to look like I do."

"While it is true that you're really too cute and small to look like a boy," I cringe slightly at her bluntness. "I think you're thinking of the people here as normal people."

I turn to her and see her looking back at me. "A normal person would probably think you're strange, but… no one in this school can be defined as normal. What makes you think that they'd even bat an eyelash at you?"

I huff at her a little. "…People like your sister. S-She'd probably never let me live it down if she knew I was male."

Her thoughtful expression turns into a grimace, knowing full well I'm right. "Well we're just speaking hypothetically anyway… you're not going to tell anyone that you're a boy any time soon." She shakes her head and turns her gaze back to the ceiling. "That was a little bit of a tangent, but my main point is that I'm really sorry for what happened. I'm going to try to keep her in check from now on so that this doesn't happen again, alright?"

I sigh and shake my head at the circle of a conversation we had. "Like I said, you didn't need to apologize…" We then fall into a semi-comfortable silence for a few minutes, before something suddenly occurs to me.

"Oh Mukuro?" She grunts. "That guy, Mondo… did you know him from before as well? It looks like he and your sister already know each other."

She sits up and looks down at me. "No, I was just as surprised as the rest of you. I only came back a few months ago so… they must have met before that." A dark look passes over her face. "I had known that she'd fallen in with a bad crowd… but I didn't think it was _that_ bad."

I look at her with a frown. "I don't really think Mondo is a bad guy though. He did help me with your sister after all…"

She shakes her head. "…That's not what I meant. I was wondering what kind of crowd she must have fallen in with if she's on the bad side of the most feared gang leader in the country. What sis did… must not have been good in the slightest."

She suddenly stands, making me jump. "Sorry to leave so abruptly Chihiro, but there's someone I need to go talk to. I'll see you later." She smiles at me before turning away and quickly exiting me room. I'm left staring at the door in surprise.

"_She seemed to be in a hurry. I wonder who she was going to see…?" _I shake my head. It's really not any of my business, so I shouldn't worry about it too much. I flop back down and stare at my ceiling for a minute or so before my stomach growls loudly.

"…No matter how many snacks I ate, it just doesn't make a meal." I mumble under my breath, willing my blush away. I don't even know why I'm blushing… since no one's even here. Sighing at my body's reactions, I decide to make my way to the cafeteria so I can get some real food.

* * *

><p>The scene I walk into when I enter the dining hall is nothing short of… uncomfortable. Sonia is standing with her back towards me and her arms crossed, with Hajime, Gundham, a boy with pink hair and eyes, and a chubby boy in a chef's jacket kneeling in front of her.<p>

Not knowing what's going on, I try to sneak by them without getting noticed so that I can make some food, but Sonia calls out to me as soon as I'm in her line of sight. "Oh Chihiro! Hello again!" She waves cheerfully at me and I give a small wave in return.

"Hello Sonia." I walk over and stand next to her in front of the kneeling boys. "U-Uhm, if it's not too much trouble… do you mind telling me why they're kneeling in front of you…?" She suddenly frowns and puffs out her cheeks.

"These four hooligans," She gestures to the boys in front of her. "Caused a huge scene in class today! I am completely ashamed to call them my friends at the moment!" She turns and points to the chef. "Teruteru had made us all a lovely banquet to celebrate the start of another year, but Gundham's hella cute hamsters got into it! He started freaking out and tried hitting the hamsters off with Souda's favorite wrench, causing him to freak out! It was really most unpleasant!"

I nod slightly, thinking that the pink haired boy must be Souda. "T-That doesn't really explain why Hajime is down there though…"

She rounds on him. "Oh, he's the worst offender of all! He just sat there while all of this was happening!"

"H-Hey, what the hell am I, the idiot police!?" Hajime says, scowling at Sonia. "It's not my job to keep all of our class dunces from killing each other!"

Souda turns to him and wails. "Hajime, that's cold! Why would you say such an awful thing about your soul friend?"

"Because it's the truth!" He says, clutching his head. "The majority of our classmates can be classified as an idiot in one way or another! Why is it that I'm the one who has to monitor you all?"

Sonia huffs. "Usually you're the one who keeps everyone else in line!" She puts her hands on her hips. "You are not allowed to complain about something that you do on the norm regardless! Take responsibility!"

Listening to their exchange… I can't help but feel bad for Hajime. It sounds like his life is stressful. "S-Sonia, maybe you should go easy on them? It is the first day after all… things happen!" She suddenly rounds on me with a stern gaze, and I clutch my skirt out of nervousness. "P-Please…?"

Her piercing gaze stays on me for a few more tense moments before she suddenly smiles at me. "Very well then. You have a heart of gold Chihiro!" She turns to the boys. "You all are very lucky such a nice girl decided to vouch for you! Next time I will not be so pleasant!" She then suddenly turns on her heel and leaves the dining hall, leaving me alone with the kneeling boys.

Hajime is the first to stand. "Jeez… you're basically a miracle worker Chihiro. She was seriously going to lay into us…"

"Yeah!" The boy named Souda pops up. "Why did you stop her!?" I look at him in shock and Hajime smacks him on the back of the head.

"Please ignore him." He dusts his pants off and sighs. "He has a major thing for Sonia, so anything she does… makes him happy. It's completely nasty." He looks at the boy in question with unmitigated disgust.

"Awh, shaddup Hajime! You're just mean!" He sniffles slightly but then turns to me. "Don't listen to him! My feelings for Miss Sonia are pure!" He sighs at my look of disbelief, but his expression quickly shifts into a pointy-toothed grin. "Whatever. My name's Kazuichi Souda…. But everyone just calls me Souda. I'm the Ultimate Mechanic! Nice to meet ya!"

"And I…" I jump when I notice that the other boy is right next to me. "Am Teruteru Hanamura, Ultimate Cook!... Though I prefer the title Ultimate Chef. It's a pleasure…" He winks at me, and I smile at them.

"O-Oh, I'm Chihiro Fujisaki. I have the title Ultimate Programmer… I-It's very nice to meet you both."

"Oho, cute and smart huh? A winning combination!" Teruteru nods to himself. "Though it will be difficult for you to fall for my poison trick…" He trails off and starts mumbling to himself. Hajime shoots me a look that screams "don't ask."

Souda, on the other hand, looks absolutely ecstatic. "A programmer!? Perfect! Would you be interested in helping me with a little project?"

"M-Me?" He nods and looks at me with sparkly eyes. "W-Well, I guess I wouldn't mind, but-"

"Perfect!" He cuts me off. "This is great! I'm gonna start drawing the plans right now! Ohh man, you have no idea how pumped I am! I-" He cuts off mid-rant when my stomach growls loudly, causing all eyes to fall on me.

…

…Oh, why me?

"S-Sorry! I, ah, didn't eat any breakfast this morning…" I say, face crimson. Hajime snorts and Souda outwardly laughs at me, making my face burn hotter. As much as I want to crawl in a hole and die at the moment, I end up staying rooted to my spot when Teruteru suddenly shouts.

"This won't do! Leaving a cute girl hungry simply won't do at all!" He crosses his arms. "Just you wait babe, I won't let you starve any longer!"

I frantically wave him off, trying to ignore the babe comment. "N-No, I really don't need you to cook for me-"

"Nonsense!" He shouts, combing his hair back. "Cooking is what I do! I'll make you some of the tastiest dishes in the world!" He turns towards the other boys in the room. "Hajime, Souda, come with me! You're going to help me prepare a feast fit for Avril Lavigne!" Without waiting for their responses, he grabs both their sleeves and drags them into the kitchen, leaving me alone with Gundham.

I look down at the strange boy, who's still kneeling on the floor. "Ah, Gundham…?" He doesn't respond, and I lean down to take a closer look at him. His eyes are closed, and his breathing is even... "Is he… asleep?" I reach out and gently shake his shoulder, but he remains unresponsive.

I let out a small sigh. _"What should I do? I can't just leave him here right?" _I sit still for a few moments thinking of my options. _"Maybe I should try shaking him again…" _Deciding that was probably my best bet, I reach for his shoulder once more… only for him to grab my arm.

My entire body freezes as he does this, but after a few more beats of silence, I figure out that he's still asleep. Internally panicking, I try to pull free from his grip. Once I start pulling though, his grip tightens slightly and suddenly my vision whirls.

"_W-What on earth!?"_

Without even understanding how it happened, Gundham somehow managed… to pull me into his lap. His arms are wrapped firmly around my torso, and his head is nuzzled into my hair.

"Soft… Rabbit…" He murmers, clinging to me tighter. My panic attack isn't internal anymore, and I mutely scream with tears pricking at the corners of my eyes.

"_How on earth does all this stuff happen to me on the first day!?"_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Do you guys think I'm picking on Chihiro a little too much? ...Nah. It is the _Misadventures_ of Chihiro Fujisaki after all... -shrugs- Anyway, I'm sorry this took so long to put up, I've been unusually busy these past two weeks. ; u; I'll try to be a bit more prompt in my updating from now on.**

**Other than that... I'd like to ask for a tiny bit of input from you guys. c: I appreciate the feedback I've gotten so far, but some of it's been a tiny bit... generic. ' w'; Specifics would be appreciated!**

**See y'all later!**


	5. Chapter 5: Sweets

Chapter 5: Sweets

I bite down on my lip to prevent any noises from coming out. Gundham doesn't seem to realize what he's doing, so I can't get mad at him, but this situation is impossible!

"_H-How does someone manage to do this in their sleep?!" _I think frantically. _"It's not logical in the least!"_

He nuzzles my hair even more, murmuring different things about softness and various small animals. I start blushing a little, because he's surprisingly sorta cute.

I jump slightly when I hear crashing from the kitchen, but quickly calm down when no one leaves it. _"O-Oh no! They can't see us like this, there's no doubt they'll tease Gundham about it!"_

I start struggling slightly to see if I can get free, but he only tightens his grip on me. Strike one.

Next, I try unwrapping his arms from around me. His grip is way too strong however, so it's a futile effort. Strike two.

I sigh. It looks like I only have one option… and it's not gonna be pretty.

"H-Hey, Gundham?" I say in a loud voice. "C-Could you please wake up?" He stirs slightly, but doesn't wake up. I huff a little, this time determined to wake him up. I start squirming more in his grip, calling out to him again. "G-Gundham…?"

Finally, he seems to wake up a little. "…hm?" After a few beats of tense silence, I feel him stiffen behind me. "…Mortal. What is it that you think you're doing?!" His arms fly from around me and I stand up as soon as I'm free. His face is crimson, and he looks absolutely mortified. "Why did you do such a thing to me while I slumbered!?"

"I-I didn't do anything!" I say with a nervous blush on my face. "You had fallen asleep while Sonia was lecturing you and the others, and then when I tried to come over and wake you up, but you didn't do anything! So I grabbed your shoulder and tried shaking you, but you grabbed my hand, and when I tried to pull away you pulled me into your lap! I've been sitting here for the past ten minutes trying to get free without waking you up, but it didn't work because you're actually pretty strong, so I finally just decided to wake you up, and here we are!"

"A likely story mortal! Why would I do such a thing?! It's foolish to say that I, the Dark Lord, Supreme Overlord of Ice, would cling to you!"

"B-But…" I start, clutching my skirt. "I don't mean to put you out like this, but… you really did pull me into your lap. I… couldn't imagine sitting in the lap of someone I just met, you know? Or sitting in anyone's lap in general! You started mumbling things about softness and rabbits though… M-Maybe you mistook me for one in your sleep?"

I take a deep breath after my long-winded explanation and rebuttal, and look up at the strange boy. "Very well mortal. You do not appear to be lying to me…" His face is still blazing, but his look of mortification has turned into one of absolute confusion. "But… how is it that you are still alive?"

I match his confused look with one of my own. "H-Huh? You were just hugging me… you didn't suffocate me or anything-"

"No!" He suddenly says, cutting me off. "You do not understand, I have poison running through my veins! Any normal human would instantly be culled if they so much as lay a finger on me! Yet you… remain unharmed!" He then pulls up his scarf to conceal his face slightly, seemingly to hide his blush. "You are exactly like those two mortals! Why is it that I've met so many singularities since coming to this wretched bastion of a school!?"

"I, uh…" Not sure what exactly he's talking about, I decide to push past it. "Who are the other two?"

"The Ultimate Reserve and that fiery princess!" He crosses his arms. "Those two mortals have an extremely low astral level like yourself, yet they somehow are able to get near me without falling to a plague!" He then turns away from me. "You… there is something very odd about you. Just like them… a deeply kept secret…" Without waiting for me to say anything else, he quickly exits the dining hall, leaving his ominous words behind him.

"W-What in the world…?" A deeply kept secret? How could he have possibly known something like that…?

Not really understanding anything that just happened, I shakily make my way over to one of the tables, looking out the large window to the field. I stare out mindlessly for a few moments before I lay my head down on the table.

I let out a small sigh. Gundham is obviously a little weird… but from what he just said, he's pretty perceptive too. "I… really need to be careful around him." I mumble to myself.

"Careful around who?"

…apparently not as much to myself as I would have liked.

My head shoots up from the table into the energetic brown eyes of one of my classmates. "H-Hina!?" Somehow she's managed to sit across from me without making a sound. She only laughs at my surprised expression.

"Hehe, you must have been super out of it Chihiro!" She cheers, grinning at me. "I wasn't that quiet coming over here you know!"

I scratch my cheek a little, not knowing how to act around her. "I-I suppose you could say that… was there something that you needed from me?"

She puffs out her cheeks in a pout. "Jeez, you're sounding like you don't want to talk to me…."

I wave her off frantically. "N-No, not at all! I mean, we haven't really talked before, so I was a little surprised…"

She grins at me. "But that's all the more reason for me to come up to you! You don't make friends without talking!"

I smile at this girl's bubbly attitude. "…You're right. S-So Hina, what brought you by here? Were you gonna get something to eat?"

She tilts her head. "Not exactly… I was just seeing if they had any donuts."

I look at her, confused. "Donuts?"

"Yes, _donuts_! Those fried dough thingies? How could you have not heard of them!?" She says, exasperated.

I shake my head. "N-No, I know what they are, I was wondering why you were looking for some…."

"Oh!" She scratches the back of her head. "Sorry. But I was looking for them because they're donuts! Who doesn't like em? They're my favorite food ya know!" She giggles slightly. "I got distracted when I saw you over here though. I was all like, "Hey, isn't that girl in my class? What was her name again? I know I had written it down three times…" But then I remembered that your name is Chihiro! So I decided to come say hi!"

Just as I'm about to respond, another loud crash comes out from the kitchen, followed by a loud scream that sounds like it came from Souda. "I, ah… think you may want to wait for a bit before you begin your search."

She cringes slightly at another crash. "I think I will! What the heck is going on in there anyway?"

I blush a little and scratch the back of my head. "I-I was talking with some acquaintances… and my stomach suddenly growled. One of them happened to have the title of Ultimate Chef and, well, he said that he couldn't let a cute girl go hungry… so he dragged the other two into the kitchen to make food."

She gasps, looking scandalized. "It's only the first day and you already have a boy cooking for you!? You sure work fast!"

"W-What!?" I say, face blazing. "No, that's not it at all! I literally just met him!"

"Oh come now Chihiro, you can be honest with me!" She teases, poking me in the forehead. "On the outside you're a shy small girl…" She strikes a pose. "But on the inside you're an experienced seductress!"

I stare at this girl with a dumbstruck look on my face. "I-I said that wasn't it! I haven't even been in a relationship yet!"

"Really, you too!?" Her hand flies to her mouth. "Er, no, I mean…"

I look at the girl in front of me with surprise. "You… haven't had a boyfriend yet?"

"O-Of course I have!" But the tone in her voice gives her away immediately, and she sighs when she realizes this. "Alright, _no_ I haven't."

I tilt my head in confusion. "But how have you not had a boyfriend? You're athletic and pretty, isn't that what most guys like?"

"Well yeah, at first!" She says crossing her arms. "But there's a lot more to me than that, and once they learn more about me… I'm just one of the guys. It sucks! They all turn tail when they see me chomping on donuts, or they all tease me when I forget things that are really simple, and sometimes they even ignore me because I'm stronger than them!" She smacks her head on the table loudly, making me jump.

"R-Really?" I start, feeling sad for the girl. "I'm sorry things are like that for you… you seem like a really nice person Hina."

She sighs, though it's muffled slightly by her face being squished against the table. "It's real nice of you to say that Chihiro… I just wish I could find a guy willing to overlook all of my weird little quirks!"

I put a finger to my lips in thought. "Well… you've only tried to find people in normal schools right? This place is pretty… abnormal. It's basically made up of weird little quirks! Maybe you'll find someone like that here?"

She lifts her head from its place on the table. "Really!? You think I can find someone with worse quirks than me?"

"W-Well, that's not really what I meant-" She cuts me off with a cheerful squeal.

"D'aw, you're the best Chihiro! I never would have thought I'd find someone with weirder quirks than me until you pointed it out! You're so smart!" She starts ranting about what kinds of boys she might meet, and I can't help but smile at the perky girl.

"_At least she has her priorities straight… as strange as they may be."_

* * *

><p>I spend another good forty-five minutes listening to Hina talk about different things, commenting at certain points so that she didn't think I was ignoring her. In that span, she talked about her previous school, her family, her interests (which essentially consisted of athletics, donuts, and cats.), and how she and Sakura had met. Apparently it was during a sporting competition they were both competing in. Someone had accused Sakura of being on steroids, which had really pissed off Hina to no end.<p>

"I mean seriously!" She fumes, crossing her arms. "Anyone who knew anything about anything could tell that she wasn't. There's a _huge_ difference between a dedication to working out and juicing up! They should have apologized once they realized Sakura wasn't gonna beat their skulls in in a fit of roid-rage! But being the dummies they were, they just kept bugging her about it!" She takes a deep breath. "I could tell from the look on her face that what they were saying was hurting her, so I decided to go tell them off. But then they decided to pick a fight with me! So just as I was about to lay the beat down on those punks, Sakura brings over the official and gets them kicked out! She then lectured on me about 'being tolerant of those who are less civilized than us', but then still thanked me for stepping in! And we've been best friends ever since!"

I smile at the girl, noting that she probably gave me the condensed version. "That's pretty amazing you know. It's pretty rare that you met a friend like that just randomly."

She grins at me. "Right? You have no idea how pumped I was when I learned that she got invited to come here too! I never would have guessed we'd be in the same class though…"

I scratch my head. "W-Well, there is only one class… aside from the reserve class that is."

"Ehh?" She says, leaning in over the table. "Reserve class?"

"Y-Yeah…" I scratch my cheek slightly. "I didn't know about it at first, I just learned about it a few days ago by coincidence…"

* * *

><p><em>-Flashback-<em>

I was walking around the academy to try and familiarize myself with it when I walked into someone.

"_Oooff!" My butt hits the floor hard. I quickly look up and see that I had run right into a boy, who was also sprawled out on the floor. "O-Oh my goodness, are you alright!? I'm sorry, I wasn't watching where I was going!"_

_He waves me off. "No worries, no major damage done." He starts gathering his things off the ground and I quickly bend down to help him. There's an awful lot of books and papers scattered all over, so it takes a while._

"_And… there!" I say, grabbing the last stack of papers off the floor. "Again, I'm really sorry that I ran into you! But if you don't mind me asking, what's all this stuff for?"_

_He gives me a confused look. "For class obviously! Where's all your stuff? You know it's starting soon right?"_

_I shake my head at him. "N-No, I haven't even been given a schedule yet…" Suddenly the boy's demeanor changes completely, and he looks down at me with a sneer._

"_Oh, you're one of __**them**__. I can't believe I assumed you were one of the hard workers like us!" He snatches the papers out of my hand and stalks off in the other direction._

_I can only stare in the direction he left in with awe. "W-What did I do to him…?"_

"_Nothing." I turn with a start to see Mr. Kirigiri looking at me. "He was just one of the more bitter reserve class students we have here…"_

"_R-Reserve class…?" I question, not quite understanding what he meant._

"_That's right." He says with a sigh. "Most people don't know this right off the bat, but there is a way to get into Hope's Peak academy without being invited… by joining the reserve course. The students there sort of… resent, the normal students here."_

"_B-But why?" I ask. "They still get the chance to attend Hope's Peak right? Does it matter how they get in?"_

"_In a way, yes." Mr. Kirigiri lets out a long-suffering sigh. "There are a couple key points that separate the reserve students from the normal ones. For one, they don't get to come here for free like you all; they actually have to pay a very expensive tuition fee. Another thing the reserve course students have to do is undergo constant exams to see if they're all up to par. You all have a cushion with your grades, because your talent may not be in whatever class you're in. They don't have that luxury; if their grades slip the tiniest bit, they're subject for expulsion."_

_I look at the aloof headmaster in surprise. "But… isn't that a little harsh? Especially since they're paying so much…"_

"_Don't get me wrong, I feel the same way." Mr. Kirigiri starts, cutting me off. "If I had my way it would be much more lax. They basically keep this school running, along with our sponsors' donations and government funding." He rubs his neck a little. "But the council has my hands tied. They think that if they want to run with the ultimates without being one themselves, they need to basically eat, sleep, and breathe this academy. It's completely irrational."_

"_I-Is that why that boy had so many books and papers?" I ask, suddenly feeling sorry for him._

_He nods. "School for them actually started a week ago. They start early just in case the council thinks that one of them is fit to gain a title… though the only time that's actually happened was last year when I went behind their backs. He deserved it though." He nods to himself slightly, ghost of a smile appearing on his face. "Anyway, I have things I need to attend to. Try not to get caught alone with them from now on!"_

* * *

><p>"…And that's what happened." I finish, twiddling my thumbs a little. "I actually met the boy he was talking about this morning; he's in the kitchen helping Teruteru cook."<p>

"Teruteru?" Hina says tilting her head to the side. "Ohh right, the chef! But anyway, that's seriously sucky for those students… but I don't really understand why they don't like us."

I frown slightly. "It's because we basically get to come and live here for free… and they have to do backflips and pay a lot of money to stay here. They think we don't work hard."

"Okay, but," She starts, puffing out her cheeks a little. "It doesn't make any sense for them to hate us if they might join us, ya know? It's a little brutal to badmouth someone you might be classmates with!"

I shake my head. "I agree that it doesn't make sense but…" I bite my lip. "L-Like I said, my acquaintance is the only one to have ever gotten into the main class. It makes sense for them to not have much hope for that…"

She huffs a little, but relents. "I guess you're right… It's still booty that they have to do all that though!" She then slumps a little in her chair. "D'aw whatever! I don't wanna talk about that depressing stuff anymore!"

We start chatting about various other things before the kitchen door suddenly bursts open, and a large cart filled from top to bottom with all kinds of beautifully plated foods.

"O-Oh my goodness! Why did you all make so much!?" I say, looking over to the boys. Both Hajime and Souda are a complete mess, covered from head to toe in flour and various sauces.

Teruteru, who's somehow remained clean, is the first to speak. "They say that a fastest way to a person's heart is through their stomach! Consider this meal my way of taking the express lane to yours…" He trails off and winks at me, and I can't help but blush at how forward he is. It's embarrassing!

Hajime loudly clears his throat, catching his attention. "Considering that Souda and I helped with this, I think we're carpooling there together." Hajime doesn't bat an eye at Teruteru's shocked expression, clearly used to his behavior. "Anyway Chihiro, you mind waiting a bit? Souda and I want some food too, but I'd rather be in clean clothes before I start digging in."

"Oh hell naw!" Teruteru shouts, undertones of an accent peeking through. "The hell you doin' thinking you can go 'n eat this pretty little lady's food? Why I oughta-"

Ignoring his outburst, I cut him off. "N-No, I don't mind at all Hajime. Please be quick though… I-I don't want all this food you three worked so hard on to go to waste." He gives me a small nod and quickly exits the dining hall with Souda in tow.

Teruteru quickly recovers from my interruption. "Why Chihiro, you're much too kind!" He combs through his hair and winks. "There isn't any need to wait however, there's plenty of food here!"

I shake my head at him. "W-Well, while that is true, I just think that eating together is more fun, you know…" I trail off when I glance over to Hina, who currently has a steady stream of drool falling out of her mouth and pooling onto the table.

Ick.

"H-Hina!" I say, handing her some napkins. "T-That's really sort of gross! What's wrong?!"

She snaps out of her trance and takes them from me. She quickly wipes her mouth off. "Hehehe, sorry Chihiro! That food just looks so good… and I only had a protein shake for breakfast…"

I quickly grab more napkins and lay them on top of the drool puddle. "W-Well, we're gonna eat when Hajime and Souda get back… do you want to join us?"

"Of course she will!" Teruteru interjects, smoothly sliding into the seat next to her. "Like you said, there's plenty of food…" He grabs a napkin and dabs at the remaining drool around her mouth. "Whaddya say babe?"

She looks like she's about to agree, but she suddenly pops up. "I-I can't right now!" She pumps her fist in the air. "I need to find donuts! They have to have some here, and I'm gonna take a bunch of them back to my room so Sakura can't bust me!"

Teruteru looks surprised for a second, but his suave demeanor is quickly put back in place. "Oho, it's donuts you want then? If you join us, I'd be more than happy to make you some…" His nose starts bleeding a little. "Cream filled are my specialty…"

My face immediately heats up, but Hina only grins. I guess the innuendo flew completely over her head. "Then yes yes, double yes! Oh, I never even got your name though!"

As they introduce themselves, I'm left wondering if Teruteru is a pervert. "_If that look Hajime sent me earlier is any indication… then I think maybe… no, definitely! He's definitely a legitimate pervert!"_

"Well then, its a pleasure to meet you Hina… I do hope that you and I get along _swimmingly_." He winks at her, and she giggles at his stupid pun, clearly not understanding just how bad it was.

_Ick._

Feeling decidedly uncomfortable, I decide to go and look for Hajime and Souda. They thankfully don't seem to notice when I slip away, and I take a deep breath to try and will my blush away for what seems like the hundredth time today.

"_Are first days always like this here…?" _I think with a sigh. I've met so many crazy people… and some of these situations I've been in seem a little too… insane. _"At least I don't have to worry about anything crazier happening…"_

At that very moment, I see a flash of pink and yellow dart past me, with Hajime coming right after it.

"Wait, Souda…!" He yells after the blur, clearly panicked. "Don't do anything stupid dammit…!"

"W-Wait, Hajime!" I say, pausing for a second to chastise myself over the jinx. "W-What's going on?"

"I don't really know myself…" He says hurriedly. "But while I was waiting for Souda to get changed, he suddenly launched out of his room, screaming something about something getting wrecked… I can't say I'm not concerned."

"W-Well then, what are we waiting for?" I say with a huff. "Lets go see if he's alright!"

He looks surprised for a second, but then nods. "Alright then, let's get going!" With those words, we dash out of the dorm area, following the sound of Souda's wails.

* * *

><p>We screech to a halt when we locate the source of his wailing; the garage. I know I shouldn't be surprised, but it's just as out of place as the bath house! Suddenly it stops with a strangled groan.<p>

I turn to Hajime. "W-What do you think made him stop…?"

"Only one way to find out…" He says, loosening his tie slightly.

Pausing for only a second, we walk into the enormous space, clearly meant for constructing and repairing various forms of machinery. It only takes a minute to spot Souda who's crumpled on the floor in front of another familiar face.

"M-Mondo…?" I say, looking at my classmate.

He looks up from the writhing boy when he hears me. "Yo Chihiro! Whaddya doing here?"

"Ah, well…" I scratch my cheek a little. "H-Hajime and I came to see what Souda was freaking out over."

He raises an eyebrow. "How do you know him…?" He then shakes his head. "Whatever. I just called him here 'cause some fucker thought it would be funny to mess with my hog." He growls slightly and then points to a motorcycle over in the corner. "Kazuichi here is my mechanic; I just shot him a quick text asking if he could take a look at it, but then he comes in here fucking screaming. He wouldn't shut up so that I could tell him what was wrong with it… so I sorta punched him in the gut."

"Are you shitting me!?" Souda screeches, managing to stand. "You didn't punch me, you just liquefied my insides!"

He looks a little sheepish at this. "Yeah… sorry 'bout that. Didn't mean to hit ya so hard."

"Awh man, whatever!" He straightens out his beanie. "So, what's the issue with it?" I expected him to be madder at him, but he recovered pretty quickly.

He grunts slightly. "S'nothing too bad, some dipshit just keyed it and slashed the front tire." He sneers. "If I knew who the fuck did it I'd kick their ass so bad…"

"Dude, where the hell did you leave it!?" Souda scolds, yelling at the biker. He immediately starts to cower though. "I-I mean, did you not hide it like you usually do…?"

Mondo ignores his comment, more focused on his bike. "It was parked in front of the damn school. I had shit to move in, so I didn't think too much of it…" He grimaces, clearly angry with himself. "Fuck, this is a pretty nice place, so I didn't think there'd be anyone stupid enough to jus' go and do that shit."

Souda sighs, crouching near the bike and examining the damage. "Look, from now on just keep it in here alright? Only students can get in here… and I sorta doubt anyone in here is dumb enough to mess with your bike." He then stands and stretches, cracking his neck slightly. "I'll fix it up as soon as I'm done eating, alright?"

I jump slightly, just now remembering the food. "Oh my goodness! W-We've got to get back! All that food you guys worked on will go to waste!" Just as I'm about to turn to leave, I look over at the gang leader. "A-Actually… do you want to come with us? There's really too much for just five people, and I'm certain Teruteru wouldn't mind…"

Hajime turns to me, confused. "Five?"

"Ah, yeah." I turn to him with a slight flush on my cheeks. "You may not have noticed her because you wanted to get changed, but one of my classmates was talking with me while you were cooking. Teruteru convinced her to eat with us…"

He looks concerned at my words. "You left them alone…?"

"I-I had to!" I say, slightly panicked. "Teruteru he- He kept on saying all sorts of inappropriate things! But Hina didn't seem to even get what he was saying so… I thought it would be okay."

"We gotta go." Souda and Hajime say at the same time, startling me. Souda continues from there. "Calling Teruteru a pervert is a complete understatement! I hope your friend is really as ignorant as you thought she was, cause otherwise Teruteru may have gotten killed by now!" Saying that, they both dash out of the garage.

"I-Is that true!?" I say, feeling ashamed. "I-I thought he was a pervert, but I didn't think it was that bad!" I turn to Mondo. "H-Hey, you can come if you want to, but I've gotta go and help her!"

He just gives me a quick nod. "Let's get going then girlie!" He grins at me. "Don't worry, if he did anything bad to that chick… I'll beat him into the fucking ground!" His grin suddenly turns feral, and he dashes out of the garage.

I quickly follow after. _"I-Is that really okay!?"_

* * *

><p>Thankfully, the scene we find once we arrive in the dining hall isn't a bad one… well, as bad as we had thought. Apparently Teruteru had decided to try and help Hina learn how to make her own donuts, which ended in exploding balls of dough. He was cleaning up the remnants just as we returned.<p>

"Oh, hello again Chihiro!" He says, winking at me. "So the angel has finally returned!" I wave at him slightly, not quite comfortable with his flirting. Hina waves at me from her seat at the table.

"I don't know any of your names besides Chihiro, so hi!" She says, grinning over at us. I look at her in confusion.

"U-Uhm, Hina? Mondo is in our class…" I say, pointing over to the tall boy.

"I know that!" She says, puffing out her cheeks. "I just don't know his name!" I fight the urge to groan.

Hajime only laughs. "Hey Souda, doesn't that kind of remind you of someone?"

Souda only thinks about it for a moment before snapping his fingers. "That's it! She's exactly like Akane! … Except for the fact that she doesn't seem to be crazy violent."

"Akane?" I ask, tilting my head.

"Oh, Akane Owari. She's in our class." Hajime explains, glancing over at Hina. "She's pretty athletic like your friend appears to be… and she's terrible at remembering names. For the first month my name switched between Henry, Hubert, Hector, and even Harriet one time!"

Souda snorts. "I think those are the only two things similar to them though at first glance. Akane acts more like a wild animal than a person, always picking fights with the strongest person she sees and stuffing her face with food whenever it's available. She's nuts!"

I gulp slightly at their description. She sounds like a terrifying person.

Mondo snorts. "Awh whatever, who cares about what's her nuts? I'm freakin starving, and that food looks pretty damn tasty!"

I smile up at him. "W-We might as well start eating now then! It would be a shame for it to get any colder!"

And so the six of us share one of the best meals of my entire life. Not just because of the food, which was delicious, but because of the people there. It was extremely rowdy, with lots of laughing and food throwing. The conversation topics just kept coming and coming, and there wasn't a single dull moment the entire time! It was… the most fun I've had in a very long time.

By the time we finished, it was well past eight. I was extremely confused as to where all the time went, but I didn't mind. After helping Teruteru with the cleanup, which some people were less than happy about, I parted ways with everyone and went to my room.

I flop down on my bed with a content smile on my face. _"While there were some bumps along the way, today was pretty good… better than I had expected my entire time here to go!" _I sigh a little bit. _"I met so many people today that I'm not sure what to do with myself! I can't believe I handled it so well…"_

I was expecting to pass out from nervousness when I tried talking to people, but… the sudden ways I met with people these past few days didn't leave me with any room to be nervous. In a way, I'm really relieved.

After a while of just sitting on my bed, I decide to shower and go to bed early. After I throw on a nightie, I crawl under my covers and close my eyes.

When I came to this school, I hadn't expected so many people to talk to me. I hadn't imagined all the kinds of things that would happen to me. But most of all… I hadn't thought that I'd be enjoying myself this much.

"…_And it was only the first day."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I'm hella sorry this took so long! I got caught up re-playing some of my favorite games... Well whatever, it's here now! But there are a couple of things I'd like to ask of you all...**

**For one, I'd like to hear some of the people I could -possibly- pair Chihiro up with! I already have some ideas, but rival love interests are always fun to me!**

**The other thing is more of a request; I really want to see more Dangan Ronpa stories on here that _aren't_ SYOCs! You all gotta admit, there are way too many here... I'd like to see some more people taking initiative and writing actual stories with the series characters... unless it's KomaHina crap, but that's just my personal bias. ' w'); Point is, we need to show more love for the actual DR characters!**

**So yeah, except my challenge or don't, I just felt like it needed to be said. ; w; I'll see y'all later!**


	6. Chapter 6: Flies

Chapter 6: Flies

I manage to crack my eyes open after a while of laying around half awake. I had spent the entire day yesterday debugging a hospital management system designed remotely alert nurses and doctors when a paitent's vital signs change. It's a relatively simple program, but fixing without actual people to test it on took longer than I would have liked. Thankfully they told me that it was better, but I was up until the wee hours of the morning waiting for confirmation.

I glance at the clock, noting that it's ten in the morning. _"At least it's Sunday."_ I think with a sigh. Deciding not to spend the entire day in my room, I force myself out of bed. I hazily make my way to the bathroom and take a quick shower, which somehow doesn't manage to wake me up at all.

I quickly get dressed in my usual outfit and throw on shoes, wanting to get some coffee to help shake off my drowsiness. I nearly forget to lock the door as I leave, having to track my way back down the hall to fix it. It's not that I think someone is going to steal from me, but… it's better to be safe than sorry.

I manage to make my way over to the dining hall, which is relatively full considering the time of day. Apparently a lot of people here aren't exactly early risers.

Not even stopping to see if any of my acquaintances are present, I make a b-line for the kitchen. I stop in front of one of the many coffee-producing machines and survey the many different types of coffee it can make. I decide to go for a peppermint mocha espresso, thinking it'll help jolt my brain to a state of clarity. I stick the disc in the coffee maker and put a mug in the proper spot before hitting the button and watching it come to life.

Grabbing a packet of sweetener and a bottle of creamer out of the fridge, I make my way back over to the machine… only to see someone crouching in front of it.

There's a girl with her hair tied into two cones on top of her head with various streaks of color running through it. She's wearing a sailor uniform and mismatched thigh-high stockings, and is basically covered in piercings. She's currently looking at the machine in awe as it pours out my drink, drool dripping from her mouth slightly.

"A-Ahm…" I say, looking down at the strange girl. "What are you-"

She cuts me off. "Shhhh!" She whispers, not looking at me. "Ibuki is waiting! Didn't you know that coffee smells the best when it just gets done brewing!?" Suddenly the machine cuts off, and the girl takes a huge whiff of my drink. "Ahhhh! Yep, definitely the best!" She cheers, standing up from her spot.

"O-Okay then…?" I say, putting my stuff down. "D-did you want a cup?"

She turns to me, and gapes slightly. "Gaspppp! A wild cutie has appeared! Ibuki uses hug!" She suddenly flies toward me and scoops me up into a bear hug.

"W-Wait, why-!?" I start, but she immediately cuts me off again.

"It's super effective!" She screeches, twirling me around. "Ibuki has captured a wild cutie! Does she nickname it?!" She abruptly stops spinning and tilts her head to the side in thought. "Yes! The wild cutie is now nicknamed… Eevee!"

"W-Why would you nickname a Pokémon with a species' name!?" I say, trying to process what's happening. "N-No, wait, more importantly… c-could you please let me down?"

But the spastic girl doesn't listen. "C'mon Eevee, you've gotta come meet Ibuki's friends! They'll totally be jealous of Ibuki's new party member!" Without even waiting for my reply, she puts me down and snatches my wrist, dragging me out to the dining hall.

She pulls me over to a table where a bunch of girls are sitting and talking happily over breakfast. None of them seem to pay any attention to her arrival until she yells out.

"Guys, guys! Check out Ibuki's new party member! Her name is Eevee!" She makes a "ta-da" sort of motion toward me, and I can feel my face flush under the sudden gazes of all the girls. I start to feel slightly more comfortable when I see a familiar face in the crowd.

"Oh, good morning Chihiro!" Sonia says, smiling over at me. "I was unaware you and Ibuki knew eachother."

"What's a Chihiro?" Ibuki asks, tilting her head in thought.

"M-Me." I say, looking over at her. "That's my name… not Eevee."

She looks shocked. "You can talk!?"

"I could this whole time…!" I say, face flushed in embarrassment. "Y-You just started pulling me around so suddenly! I tried to talk to you, b-but you weren't listening at all…"

Ibuki's expression slips from surprised to depressed in a grand total of two seconds. "Ibuki is so deeply sorry! She got your name completely wrong! If this were a song it would be called "I Misspelled That Name So Bad It Became A Number!" A-blub-blub-blub-blub!" Suddenly the girl starts foaming at the mouth, and I can only gape at her strange behavior.

I frantically look to the other girls present, but they're only watching the scene like it's a common occurrence! I turn back to Ibuki and pat her on the back slightly. "It's fine… y-you know better now, right? No harm done."

Just as quickly as it started, the foam stops coming from her mouth. She perks up instantly and pulls me into a one-armed hug. "Hey, ya know, you're pretty chill! Plus… you smell good! Why don't you come and join us Eeve- Er, Chihiro?"

I'm about to decline, because I _really_ want that coffee, but Sonia speaks up before I can. "Oh, what a wonderful idea Ibuki! Come over here Chihiro, please do sit by me!" Even though it was more of a request, the way she said it made it sound much more like a command. With a sigh, I reserve myself to my coffee-less fate and plop down in between Sonia and a girl with silver hair and glasses.

Completely ignorant to my plight, she beams down at me. "It's really nice to see you! I'm so happy you decided to join us!"

A childish looking girl with twin tails snorts. "Just great, another loser for me to deal with!" She then grins maliciously over to a girl with choppy hair. "Of course, no one can top Mikan when it comes to being disgusting."

"Hyaaa!" The girl squeals, covering her head. "I-I'm so sorry for being disgusting! I'll leave now, I promise!" She gets up to leave, but a girl with red hair and freckles stops her.

"Mikan, please sit down." She says, smiling over at the girl. "We've been over this already, you're not disgusting, no matter how many times Hiyoko says it. You should know that's just how she is by now."

The girl, Mikan, nods slightly. "I-I know… I'm sorry I forgot!" She wipes tears from her eyes. "I'll let you draw on my arms next time!"

The red-head simply shakes her head and sighs. The gray haired girl next to me takes this opportunity to comment. "I'd advise against pressing the issue further Mahiru. You know how she is."

I can't help but feel a little out of place here. It's clear that all of these girls are good friends with each other… and I'm just left sitting awkwardly and twiddling my thumbs.

Sonia seems to notice my discomfort, and immediately frowns. "Oh my goodness, I completely forgot to introduce you to everyone!" She then stands from her seat, commanding all attention. Even the girl who had been stuffing her face the entire time had paused to look at the princess.

"Everyone, I would like to introduce you to Chihiro Fujisaki!" She says, gesturing to me. "She just started here in the class below us!" I give a small wave, nervous at being put on the spot like that. "Chihiro, I'd like you to meet the girls of the class of 77… sans one!" She cheers, gesturing to everyone at the table.

"I-It's nice to meet you all." I say, blushing slightly. "Like she said, my name's Chihiro… Ultimate Programmer. I-I hope that we can all get along."

They all go through and introduce themselves to me one-by-one, but I really only catch their names because of how tired I am. Once it's over with, they all resume with their conversations respectively, or stuffing their face like Akane.

I was surprised to find out during her introduction that she and Hina really were similar. They had similar looks, with chocolate brown hair and tanned skin, and extremely athletic tendencies. I had thought Hajime was exaggerating when he said she was terrible names but… she has called me Chacha with such confidence that I had to try really hard not to laugh.

As the conversation drones on, I find myself starting to doze off. I have to fight to keep my head up as Hiyoko complains about "some dumbass reserve course whore", and just as I'm certain I'm about to go down for the count, I feel a tap on my shoulder.

The silverette, whose name I learned to be Peko, is holding a cup of coffee out to me. "You seem like you need this more than I do." She says with a neutral expression. I look at her in surprise for a second, but I then flush slightly and gratefully accept the cup.

"T-Thank you so much Peko." I say, taking a sip. It doesn't have any creamer, so it's a little bitter, but it gives me life all the same. I glance up to see her staring at me with a strange sort of expression on her face. "U-Uhm, is there something wrong…?"

She immediately snaps to attention. "A-Ah, no, nothing!" She says hurriedly, waving me off. She remains silent for a while longer before she decides to speak to me again. "If you do not mind me asking, do you… have any pets?"

I tilt my head at her in confusion. "W-Well no… why?"

"You just seem like the type who would. I think a bunny would suit you." Her expression suddenly shifts into something I can't quite place. "O-Or maybe a cute little mouse… or a fluffy bird."

I shoot the girl a confused look. "It's funny that you should mention that…" I say, scratching the back of my head. "Gundham had said something similar to me."

"_Even though it was in his sleep."_ I add internally.

"I see, so you've met him as well." She nods, but then frowns. "I had asked him what kind of animal would suit me, but…" She starts to glare at the table. "He told me that no creature would want to associate with someone who has a "malevolent aura" like me."

She looks like she's pouting, but it's a little hard to tell for certain. "O-Oh, I see…" I start, nodding slightly. "You're one of those people who likes animals, but can't seem to get any to like them."

"Unfortunately, you're completely right." She says with a huff. "I just want to be able to… pet them." Her face shifts into a slightly unsettling smile. "Pet them to my heart's content… nuzzle in their soft fur…"

Suddenly I can't help but feel scared looking at the girl. _"Maybe it's for the best that no animals go near her…" _The way she's eyeing me makes me a little uncomfortable, and before I can change the subject, she speaks up again.

"This may seem like a strange request, but…" She fidgets slightly, lifting her hand up. "M-May I… pet you?"

I look at her, completely speechless. "Wha…?"

"It's just that… you look so small and soft. Like a little baby squirrel." She says, hand twitching closer to my head. "I… just want one little touch. To see if you're as soft as one." By now we've gotten the entire table's attention, but she doesn't seem to notice. "Just one little…"

Suddenly, a small-looking boy is standing next to her. "Peko! What the fuck do you think you're doing?" He has two lines shaved into the side of his head, and a pretty cute face. The look on it right now isn't cute though, as he's scowling at the strange silverette.

As soon as she realizes his presence, her hand flies away from my head. "Y-Young Master!" She says, flushing slightly. "I-I'm sorry you had to see that, I-"

He sighs, cutting her off. "I already know about your damn obsession with animals. That's not the point here!" He glances to me, but then quickly cuts back to her. "What the hell do you think you're doing to someone I know for a fact that you just met!? You don't just _pet_ people Peko, she's not a "little baby squirrel"! And what did I tell you about calling me that!?"

"I'm sorry Young Mas-" She quickly corrects herself. "Fuyuhiko. But her hair… looks so fluffy. Like a poofy little rabbit… a-and I…" She trails off as he rolls his eyes at her.

The boy, Fuyuhiko, turns to me with a sigh. "I'm really sorry about her behavior. She's not usually so fucking weird, but she just can't help herself when it comes to cute things."

Hiyoko takes this opportunity to snort loudly. "Hah! You think the little dweeb is cute!"

He replies with a snort of his own. "Next to you, anything would be fucking adorable. Even Teruteru's ass." She squeals in indignation at his comment, and he smirks. "Anyway, c'mon Peko. We've gotta go back to the house to take care of a few things. That's the whole reason I came here in the first fucking place."

She quickly stands at his command, but falters and turns back to me. "I-I'm truly sorry for my behavior… if you'll excuse me." She then turns to leave with him without another word.

I stare at the door completely dumbstruck. _"My day just started, but I've already ran into some impossible people…!" _I don't have much time to dwell on it however, as Hiyoko starts to wail loudly.

"Waaaahhhh…! Mahiru, that little yakuza bitch said Teruteru's ass was cuter than me! It's not right? It's definitely not…!" As Mahiru tries to console the wailing girl, I turn to Sonia.

"Y-Yakuza…?" I ask, voice wavering. "He's yakuza!?"

She simply smiles and nods. "Oh yes. His full name is Fuyuhiko Kuzuryuu. He's the next in line to lead the Kuzuryuu clan! Most people wouldn't guess because of his cute face, but you could say that he's… quite bad ass!"

"R-Right…" I nod, internally wincing at the amount of dangerous people who attend this school. "So does that mean that Peko…?"

She nods again. "You guessed correct! She's his right hand! She became the Ultimate Swordswoman through her training to protect Fuyuhiko!" She huffs in excitement a little. "Isn't it romantic?! It's just like a drama; two childhood friends raised from birth, one destined to serve the other… but secretly, they both pine after each other! I would most definitely purchase all three seasons!"

"_Three seasons!?_" I quickly shake that thought off, because that's definitely not what's important. "W-Wait… so do they really?"

She shakes her head with a smile. "I do not think so! But I definitely…" She pauses and tilts her head in thought, trying to find her words. She then huffs with a smile. "Ah yes, I definitely ship them!"

I shake my head with a smile, quickly changing the subject. "So ah, I take it you like dramas?"

"Oh yes, they're quite wonderful!" Her eyes seem to sparkle at this. "They are quite the hot commodity in Novoselic, Anime is quite popular as well! It is the whole reason I wanted to attend school here in the first place! The Japanese culture is just so enchanting…"

"D-Do you have any favorites?" I ask tilting my head to the side.

"Oh goodness, it's impossible for me to pick!" She says, waving me off. "All of them are just so charming in their own way, I could never decide!" She then turns to me with curious eyes. "Oh Chihiro, which dramas do you like? I feel like you'd be fond of the ones that are more light-hearted, correct?"

I shake my head at her. "A-Actually, I've never really watched dramas. I like a few Animes though-"

"That is absolutely unacceptable!" She yells, crossing her arms. "How is it that you do not enjoy them? They are a staple of entertainment! Could it be that you did not have anyone to teach you about their wonders…?" She huffs, deflating slightly. "Of course, that must be it! Worry not Chihiro, I shall educate you! We will have a marathon of some of the best dramas Japan has to offer! Come!" She grabs my wrist and stands, about to drag me away. Thankfully, someone appears, catching her attention.

My eyes widen when I see who it is.

"Oh Chiaki!" Sonia cheers. "You overslept, we were just finishing up breakfast! I was wondering what took you so long!"

Standing in the doorway is a girl with pinkish hair and eyes that I know all too well. She looks half-asleep, but perks up when she lays eyes on me.

"Oh, hello Fath-" I rush over and cover her mouth, and quickly drag her out of the dining hall, leaving everyone staring our way in surprise. Once we're out of ear shot, I round on her.

"C-Chiaki! Is it… is it really you!?" I whisper harshly, tears pricking out of the corners of my eyes. I look directly into her eyes, and she just smiles at me like she had before. "W-What… where on earth have you been…?"

She doesn't answer me right off the bat. Instead, she moves to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with me. After a moment, she tilts her head. "I wasn't expecting you to be shorter than me. But then again, I never saw how tall you were from the computer… I think. Maybe I just forgot?" She shakes her head. "Anyway, I'm really happy to be seeing you after so long Father."

I shake my head and pull her into a hug. Chiaki Nanami is an AI I had developed for a company who was experimenting to see if a conscious entity was able to be transplanted into another vessel; in this case, and artificial intelligence into a human body. When they had first contracted me they weren't clear with their purpose; they had just wanted and AI that would be able to function as a normal person. It wasn't until later, when she was actually finished, that they told me their true intentions.

* * *

><p><strong>Flashback:<strong>

_I glare hard at the overweight business man on the other end of the video call. "Y-You can't just take someone's body to implant an AI into! That must be illegal! Not to mention that kind of thing should only be possible in movies!"_

"_Oh, it is." He says flatly. "Which is why the body has been cultivated on its own for the past fifteen years. It's just an empty vessel; fully functional, but with no will of its own." I look off to the side at the pictures of a sleeping girl around my age, if not a little older. "You see, we've even modified her to look like that AI you had made! There's nothing wrong about it." He straightens out his collar a little. "In regards to your movie remark… there are plenty of technological advancements that are being made on a daily basis. This is no different. Now, if you would, please send over the AI. It's no skin off your nose if it doesn't work, no harm done!"_

"_O-Of course there's harm done!" I near shriek. "Not only are you tampering with human bodies, but you're completely disregarding her well-being! What exactly happens to her if this doesn't work? And what if it does? W-What happens to her then!?"_

"_If it doesn't work, she gets scrapped." He snorts, undeterred. "But if it does, we'll observe her, see if it has and adverse effects. Imagine the possibilities this can unlock! People could change bodies like they do clothing! If one is ruined, simply switch to another… countless lives can be saved! Not to mention…" He gets a creepy grin on his face. "People can make themselves beautiful… for a measly sum, of course."_

_I manage to sneer at him. "W-Well, like it or not, I'm pulling out of this project! It's inhumane, and I no longer wish to be a part of it! I'll send your money back immediately..."_

_He glares at me, making me flinch. "Need I remind you, you have a contract to uphold! If you peel out of it now, consider your programming career finished! We'll sue you so that even your children inherit the debt!" He then clicks off the call, smug grin on his face._

_I feel tears pricking at the corner of my eyes as my two creations appear on-screen. "Master?" Alter Ego ventures, frowning at me. "You're not going to send her away, right?"_

_I shake my head. "N-No… I could never!" I feel tears tracking down my face. "You and Chiaki are all I have… I could never do something that awful to either of you!"_

_Chiaki looks up at me, confused. "Hey, would it really be so bad? If it works, Alter Ego and I can be people too."_

_I shake my head at her. "No… you'd be a test subject. Y-You'd be under constant supervision with no contact from anyone… I'd probably never see you again. That's only if it works though… if it doesn't, they'll just delete you! You heard what he said…"_

_She peers up at me with a frown. "But you'll be in trouble if I don't go right?"_

_Once again, I shake my head. "M-Maybe… but I'm certain I could find a good lawyer… dad would probably help too."_

_She looks up at me with a defiant expression for a second before she disappears. I frantically turn to Alter Ego. "W-What's she doing!?"_

_Looking panicked, he disappears for a second before appearing in front of me again, tears in his eyes. "She's… she's emailing herself to the company Master! I tried to stop her, but she set up a bunch of programs to stall me!"_

_I quickly track her down on the hard-drive, and see that Alter Ego wasn't kidding about her setting up road blocks for him. I quickly type in the commands to disperse the programs with ease, only to see that her file is almost all the way transferred. She smiles up at me, and I can't help but to burst out into tears._

"_Chiaki… why would you do that!? You won't be able to act freely anymore! You just sold your soul!" I furiously wipe tears away from my eyes as she simply shakes her head._

"_Maybe, but… I don't want your life to be ruined because something I had control over." Her body starts to fade from the screen from her feet up. "Please don't be sad. I'll be sure to come back to you, no matter what." I can only open and close my mouth mutely, unable to force words out through my tears. "If it doesn't work, I'll leave as quickly as I can… and if it does, I'll still come back to you both. You and brother are my family after all… and that's… important to me." She closes her eyes with a content smile on her face as she fades off the screen, leaving a single text box in her wake._

"_Goodbye Father."_

* * *

><p>For the next few days after that I hadn't been able to sleep, deeply concerned for her well-being. It wasn't until I received an e-mail from the company that I had started to breathe easy again, saying that the project was a success. A month later however, they had contacted me again saying that she had disappeared without a trace, and the worry had come back in full force.<p>

After that, I hadn't received any more messages, but I had seen that the company had been shut down for human experimentation, not just with what they did with her, but for tampering with people's brains as well. I was expecting them to come for me, but when I had looked into it, the contract I had signed with them had been destroyed, as well as any record of us ever being affiliated. I had suspected that Chiaki had something to do with it, but… I didn't know how I was supposed to find her.

After a while I had come to believe she hadn't been able to make it on her own… but to find out after all this time she actually was alright! I… can't help crying.

"Hey, Father, why are you crying? I thought you'd be happy to see me?" She says, hugging me back. I wipe away the tears and scowl up at her, pulling away.

"I am! I'm so happy that you're alright, but… what happened? I-It's been two years… you didn't try to contact me at all! I thought for certain that you had died!" I can't help but to start sobbing, and she frowns.

"I... tried to." She says, wiping away some of my tears. "When I got away from those people… I didn't know what to do. I had forgotten what your IP address was, so I couldn't look up where you lived at all, and I basically didn't exist. I spent a lot of time that first year just wandering around, sleeping and eating where I could. I started participating in video game contests for money, and after so long Mr. Kirigiri tracked me down and asked me to come here because of how good I am at them."

"O-Okay, but…" I start, stifling a hiccup. "That doesn't really make any sense. How can you be enrolled here if you aren't a citizen?"

She smiles at me, handing me a tissue. "Mr. Kirigiri helped me with that… I had told him about where I had come from. He didn't believe me at first, thinking I just had amnesia. When he did his research and saw what that company got shut down for though, he took me seriously. At first I wanted him to help me find you, so that I could get back to you and brother, but he convinced me that if I was going to function as a real person that I would really need to interact with people in a normal environment. It's actually helped a lot, no one ever guessed-"

"W-Wait!" I say, looking up at her. "Then the reason I got invited here…"

"Was because I asked him to bring you here. You're really talented, so he didn't really have any issue with it, and was glad to send you one." She finishes with a smile. "I wanted him to do it sooner, but the class was already pretty much full, and the council made him wait to extend the invitation until after the school year ended."

I can't help but to look at her in shock… but then I reach up and flick her in the nose. "You… you're so stupid!" I say, looking up at her through tears. "Y-You could have still contacted me! It wouldn't of been hard for you to have asked Mr. Kirigiri for my e-mail! I-I was so worried… I had completely given up on seeing you again!" I pull her into a hug again, burying my face in her shoulder. "Why didn't Mr. Kirigiri say anything to me…?"

"Oh, I asked him not to." She says simply. "I wanted to come and see you for myself. Is brother here too?" She asks, tilting her head.

"_I'm glad she's as laid back as ever… but still!" _I think with a sigh. _"She could stand to be a little more apologetic…"_ Deciding to save my brooding for later, I wipe the last of my tears away and smile up at her, just happy that by some convenient miracle I was able to meet with her again. "Of course I did. You really think I would just leave him behind?"

She smiles and shakes her head. "No. I knew you would… probably." Suddenly, she pulls me into a hug without prompting. "I'm happy that I can finally hug you Father. You're very warm…" I wrap my arms around her in return, happy to hear her heartbeat. Suddenly, something occurs to me and I pull away.

"A-Ah, Chiaki! You can't call me father around people!" I lower my voice to a whisper. "No one knows about me here! You still remember what I told you about me, right?"

She nods. "I do… "She says with a frown. "I never understood why you don't tell people, but I promise I'll respect your wishes. What should I call you instead?"

I sigh, happy that she understands enough to keep quiet. "J-Just call me Chihiro like everyone else… and when you talk about me, say "she" instead of "he", alright?"

She nods a little, and her mouth twitches into a smile. "Okay… Chihiro." She mumbles it a few times under her breath, seemingly practicing. "…Alright! I think I can do this Chihiro… maybe!"

I fight the urge to smack my head at her wishy-washy answer. "A-Anyway, if anyone asks… you and I are cousins, alright?" She nods mutely. "Okay… w-we should probably get back in there. I-I don't think we can leave things alone like that…"

She nods again and grabs my wrist, dragging me back to the dining hall. "Everyone!" She cheers, holding up my arm. "This is my cousin Chihiro… We haven't seen each other in two years, so we had to go catch up! I'm sorry for our abrupt exit!"

I want to cry at how painfully obvious she's being. "_No one's gonna buy it!"_ The way she's acting is totally conspicuous, and-

"Makes sense that the two nerds would be related." Hiyoko laughs, pointing at us. "I bet you you're as much of a weirdo as Chiaki! Do you fall asleep in the middle of a sentence like she does?"

"Hiyoko!" Sonia chides, frowning at her. "Chiaki may do that on occasion, but that does not mean that it's a family trait! Try to be more considerate!"

As they start bickering, I can't help but sigh. On one hand I'm completely shocked that actually worked, but at the same time… she's been with these people for a while. Maybe she knew it would…? I glance up at her to see that she had actually fallen asleep… while standing.

"_Huh…" _I think, smiling at her. _"I guess she has changed since I knew her… I'm happy that she's been able to grow on her own." _Looking at her, I can't help but yawn. Seeing her sleeping so soundly makes me want to sleep as well.

I tap her shoulder, startling her awake. "Yes Fa- Chihiro?" She says with a yawn.

"I'm going to go back to my room for a while, alright?" I say, handing her a handkerchief to wipe away the drool. "I'd like to talk to you later about everything that's happened though… a-are you free?"

She nods slightly after screwing her face in thought. "That's fine…" Suddenly she starts huffing in excitement. "Hey hey, can it be a sleepover? People talk a lot during those, and they don't actually sleep that much, did you know that?! So can we?"

I can't help but giggle at her excitement. "Sure but… I can't promise that it'll be that much fun."

She smiles, smacking her chest. "Don't worry! I'll teach you all about them!"

I nod, not wanting to burst her bubble over her misunderstanding. "I look forward to it. I'll see you later Chiaki!" She waves goodbye and promptly falls asleep, making me shake my head as I walk off to take a short nap in my room.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Okay, so I get the Chiaki thing is a *little* strange, but you gotta realize that the second game totally proves that this shit is possible! ; w; So no complaints! **

**I toyed with the idea of actually making them cousins, but... I liked this better. ' w' Makes their relationship a lot deeper, you know?**

**On an unrelated note, has anyone ever seen Dangan Ronpa: The Abriged Thing? It's bomb, and if you haven't watched it, I suggest you do! It's just... great. xD**


	7. Chapter 7: Princess

Chapter 7: Princess

I wake up early Monday morning to Chiaki sleeping soundly next to me. After my nap, I managed to track her down and ended up spending the majority of the day together, simply catching up on her life since we separated. After all the talking we did, I didn't really think that the sleepover was still necessary, but… she insisted.

She was right in saying that sleeping wasn't really a huge part of a sleepover; she had kept me up until 3 a.m. just doing whatever came to her mind: Videogames, her doing my hair because she wanted to, "gossiping" that actually just turned out to be her talking about her friends, everything.

"Hmmph… Father?" She says with a mumble. "Why are you up so early…?"

I let out a small laugh. "I think you meant Chihiro?" I say, poking her in the forehead. "And I'm up because we have school in a few hours. You really need to get up and get yourself ready."

She groggily feels around the floor for her phone, clicking the screen on when she finds it. "It's only seven in the morning…?"

I laugh again, popping out of bed. "Classes start at eight Chiaki. When do you usually get up?"

She sits up, tilting her head to the side in throught. "I usually get up around seven-fifty… I think."

I nearly trip over something in the dark as she says this. "B-But then you only have ten minutes to get ready and go to class!"

"It's not so bad." She says with a yawn. "I just get dressed and go. I take showers at night."

"That's not the issue Chiaki!" I say, looking at her in worry. "Do you not eat breakfast?"

She doesn't answer, instead looking at me curiously. "Is this… what everyone calls a troublesome parent?" She then puffs out her cheeks. "Jeez Dad, I can take care of myself!" Her expression shifts back to curiosity. "That's how you say it right?"

"I… what?" I say, looking at her dubiously.

"Everyone who has a parent sometimes talks to them or about them like that." She says with a small smile. "I just wanted to try it."

I shake my head at the former AI, sighing at her observation. "I guess that's fine, but you've gotta remember…" I say, frowning at her. "You have to call me Chihiro. No one knows I made you, and no one knows that I'm a boy. We'd both be in trouble if you let it slip!"

She puffs out her cheeks again. "I know… I'll be good. I think."

I huff slightly. "Back to the topic though, you _are_ eating right?"

"Yes." She says, smiling softly. "My friends know I don't normally eat in the mornings. They take turns bringing me snacks." She tilts her head slightly. "But Hiyoko isn't allowed to anymore, because she fed me dried glue once."

I simply stare at her for a moment. _"I don't know whether to be more upset at the fact that Hiyoko was mean enough to give her glue to eat… or the fact that she actually ate it." _I quickly shake my head.

"Well, as long as you're eating…" I laugh slightly, smiling at her. "You know, you're making me feel like a real parent… it's a little scary."

She smiles back. "Hey hey, you _are_ my parent… in a way." She tilts her head. "Thinking about it, you treated brother and I the same way when we were in the computer, why's it different now?"

"Because you're a _person_ now. Not to mention one who's technically older than me!" I yawn, stretching and getting up from my place on the bed. "You get how this is weird, right?"

"…" She shakes her head after a moment of thought. "Nope. I really don't."

I smile and shake my head. "It's probably something only I can get really… I don't think anyone's ever really been in this kind of situation before if I'm being honest." I gather up my clothes for the day and head to the bathroom for a quick shower. "Oh, hey," I say, turning back to her. "Do you want me to wake you up again before I leave?"

I glance back when she doesn't respond and see that she's already fallen back asleep. I giggle slightly. _"I guess this is just a quirk of hers… I remember she's sometimes be a little unresponsive when she was an AI… is this how it transferred to her being a person I wonder?" _I shake those thoughts off deciding not to dwell on it, and quickly head into the bathroom to shower and dress.

By the time I get back however, Chiaki is already gone. "I guess she went back to her room…?" I muse, tilting my head slightly. I quickly pull on some knee-high socks and shoes, before turning to gather my laptop and cord from their place on the desk. As I slip my essentials for class in my bag, I hear the buzzer go off to my door.

I rush over to the door and open it. "Oh Chiaki, did you forget-" I cut myself at who I see standing there. "Mukuro and… J-Junko?"

Mukuro offers me a small smile by way of greeting. Junko's expression remains neutral. "Good morning Chihiro. May we come in?"

I hesitate slightly, but nod anyway. "S-Sure thing…" I open the door wider so that the two sisters can squeeze in, before shutting it behind me. I turn towards them, nervous lump forming in my throat. "W-Was there something you needed…?"

Mukuro glances over to Junko, who sighs loudly. "I'm so sorry for my outburst Friday… I was under a lot of stress… I was completely out of line." Something about her words make me think they're rehearsed, so I turn and shoot a nervous look to Mukuro.

She simply smiles at me. "I really hope you'll find it in you to forgive her Chihiro. She really is sorry." Looking at her, it seems like Mukuro doesn't doubt her sister at all… and that only serves to make me more nervous.

Not wanting to upset anyone, I simply nod. "R-Right… It's fine Junko. I-I don't know what your life is like, s-so I can't really blame you for it."

Mukuro's smile widens slightly, while Junko flinches, as if she weren't expecting that kind of answer.

"Great!" Mukuro says, heading back towards the door. "I'll leave you two alone for a minute then so that you can clear the air…"

"_Oh god no." _I internally plead. _"Please please please don't leave me alone with her!" _But as expected, it fails, and she quietly exits the room, shutting the door firmly behind her.

I whip my head back around to Junko, who's simply examining her nails. "Huh." She says, strolling over to my computers. "So you _are_ a little geek, huh?" She trails off a moment before clicking her nails on my desk, making me jump. "It's a little sad how gullible sis is, don't you think? But she always forgives me in the end, no matter what."

I draw in a sharp breath, now certain that her apology from earlier was a fake. "S-She just trusts you. Isn't that how sisters-"

She cuts me off. "Cut the chit-chat pipsqueak. Here's how things are going to go down." She suddenly produces a pair of glasses seemingly from nowhere and puts them on, crossing her arms. "Because you made me appear to be such a villain in class Monday, the headmaster is making me issue a public apology to the class today. You are going to say you forgive me completely and smooth things over with everyone, understand?"

I open my mouth to protest, but her demeanor suddenly changes again, this time putting on a cutsey face. "Unless you say otherwise, everyone's going to think I'm just a big ol' meanie! You wouldn't want that, right?"

Once again, she switches into a different persona before I can say anything. "And if you fuckin' don't, I'll make sure your life here is a living hell! Forget taking your books and writing nasty things on bathroom stalls, I'll make you wish you weren't ever born!"

Completely terrified by this girl and her mood shifts, I can only bring myself to mutely nod. She then smiles, putting her original façade back in place. "Great. Now then, I'll be taking my leave." As she reaches for the handle, she turns back to me, sinister look on her face. "Oh, and if you say anything about this to Mukuro… I'll make certain you regret it." She winks at me and leaves, slamming the door loudly behind her.

I take a few shaky breaths, trying to steady my nerves. _"I-I've been afraid of people before, but this… Junko is just terrifying!" _At least with the people before they had their redeeming qualities, but… the way Junko was changing her personality to her whims… it's almost impossible for me to guess how she's really like!

I manage to walk over to my bed and sit down, making a move to grab my phone from the night stand. As I do though, I notice that my hands are shaking. A lot. Ignoring it, I click my phone's screen on, noting that it's 7:30. Thirty minutes till class.

"_I'm hungry but…" _I glance down to my hands. _"I don't think I can face anyone like this right now." _

I sit around for the next ten minutes, just trying to get the shaking to stop. Eventually it calms down enough so that it's barely noticeable, and I decide to risk leaving the safety of my room to get some food. Thankfully the dining hall is relatively quiet, and I manage to grab a poptart from the pantry without incident.

I scan the dining hall for an empty table so that I can eat in peace. Sadly there aren't any empty seats, but I notice someone familiar alone in the corner of the dining hall. Sitting quietly and feeding his hamsters is Gundham, with a barely perceptible smile on his face. Deciding to take my chances with the strange boy, I decide to approach him.

"Ah, Gundham…?" He glances over to me, and nods slightly in greeting. "D-Do you mind if I join you?"

He glances down to his hamsters before answering. "Very well! You are lucky the Four Dark Devas favor you so…" He smirks slightly. "Even though your presence does not bother me, you would have been fried to a crisp if they did not give their approval!"

"_Is that… a roundabout way of saying he wants me to…?" _I smile over at him and nod, taking the seat across from him. The grey and white hamster, Jum-P, stops nibbling his sunflower seed and crawls up my arm, curling up on my shoulder for a nap. Cham-P then scurries over and nudges my hand asking for pets. I happily comply with a smile.

"It is still strange to me." Gundham muses, watching me with a thoughtful look on his face. "The last time the Devas took such a shine to a mere mortal was when they first met the she-cat… and even then she wasn't allowed to touch them so freely."

"Is that so?" I say, rubbing Cham-P's belly. "I really don't know why… I've never even had an animal to look after before."

He looks at me in shock. "You're saying you've yet to pledge allegiance to another deity…? Why not?"

"W-Well…" I start, nervously. "My Father never let me have one because we were moving all the time. I-I was actually considering getting something small to keep me company, like a turtle or maybe a mouse-"

"Huhuhu…. So you've decided to delve straight into slavery!" He says, cutting me off. "Such reckless behavior… How entertaining!" He smirks over to me. "Worry not mortal, I shall use my knowledge to assist you… for a price of course!"

"O-Oh, uhm…" I say, surprised at his offer to help. "I'd really appreciate it! What would you like from me in exchange though…?"

I glances off to the side, a little sheepish. "You are… an expert in computers, correct?" I nod. "I maintain a website with many followers; outwardly it appears to be a simple site with care instructions, however… it is actually full of arcane secrets and rituals only those with an astral level as high as my own can decipher! Summoning spells for the mighty phoenix, the grand Cerberus, and even the terrifying Leviathan!" As he continues talking, his voice gets progressively more excited; he even shows the smallest of smiles.

"_It sort of sounds like he may be talking about breeding tips…" _I muse, trying my best not to smile at him. "Alright, so… what would you like me to do with it?"

He frowns suddenly. "I have had some issues with mortals breaking into my website recently… those pesky creatures that essentially live to cause people grief over the internet! They intentionally change my information posted on the sight and lead others to ruin, laughing at their demise!"

I tilt my head. "You mean… trolls?" He nods, scowling.

"I have done my best to prevent their attacks, however…" He huffs slightly, crossing his arms. "Those machines… I can use their basest functions, but otherwise they confound me! I would like you to assist me by designing a system to keep the vermin from messing with the critical information I have posted."

"I see… it should be easy enough…" I muse. "Alright, I'd be happy to help you!"

He snorts softly. "It is an equal exchange. It's not as if you had a choice in the matter."

I shake my head. "I would have helped you anyway if you had just asked." I reach over to pet Sun-D, who's napping on his hand. "That's what friends do; they help each other out. I wouldn't have asked for anything in return."

I glance up at him, to see him staring at me wide-eyed. "Friends, you say…?"

I start, pulling my hand back. "S-sorry!" I feel my face heating up at my own words. I don't know what possessed me to call him a friend, but… I don't really think it's a bad thing. "I-I dunno why I said that honestly, b-but I really think we could be good friends… O-Only if you want to be of course!"

He simply stares at me for a moment before breaking out into a chuckle. "I see… Very well mortal! I accept you request for friendship! Be honored!" Though he's smirking at me, I see the tiniest hint of pink on his cheeks.

"_Is he… flattered?" _I smile up at him and nod, going back to my business of petting Sun-D. _"I think I'm getting better at understanding him… even if it's just a little."_

* * *

><p>After spending the rest of breakfast talking with Gundham, I was forced to part ways with him when the warning bell chimed. I slowly make my way over to the classroom, dreading what's coming.<p>

"_I really don't want to say anything… but I don't have much of a choice."_

Suddenly someone smacks into my side, and I hit the ground hard. "Ow…!" Rubbing my side, I crack my eyes open to see a girl with long bluish-black hair on the ground as well.

She quickly recovers. "Oh, I'm so, so sorry! Are you alright?" She stands and brushes her skirt off before holding her hand out to me, taking it, I pull myself to my feet.

I offer her a shaky smile. "I-I'm fine."

She sighs, seemingly relieved. "Good… I'm really sorry I ran into you like that! I just got here when the warning bell rang, and I was panicking trying to find my class in time!"

I shake my head. "It's alright… which class are you looking for? I-I don't mind taking you there if you need it."

"Really?" Her eyes light up. "Thank you so much, uhm…?"

"Oh!" I say, starting slightly. "I'm Chihiro Fujisaki! It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise!" She says, smiling. "But uhm… by any chance, would you happen to know who I am?"

I stare at her for a moment, trying to remember where I might have seen her before. "Uhm… you look familiar, but I can't really place a name."

Her expression shifts into something dark for a moment, but she quickly recovers. "Not to worry! My name's Sayaka Maizono! I'm here because I'm the Ultimate Pop Sensation!"

Something clicks in my head. "I-I'm sorry, I've never really followed pop culture much…" I flush slightly. "A-Anyway, what class were you heading to?"

"I need to find class 1-A." She says, picking her bag up off of the floor.

My eyes widen, and I smile at the girl. "T-That's my class…"

"Really?" She smiles. "Then we'll be classmates!" She checks the time on her phone and her expression shifts into one of panic. "We've only got one minute left!?"

I hurriedly pick up my bag off of the floor and grab her wrist. "L-Let's go then! I don't want to make you late on your first day!" We take off in the direction of the class room, and manage to slide in just as the bell rings.

"We made it…!" I sigh out, falling to my knees. Shirabe looks at me with something akin to amusement on his face.

"Barely." He snarks, offering me a hand. I grab it and pull myself up. "And you must be Sayaka."

The girl in question smiles at him, still catching her breath. "Y-Yes. I'm so sorry for almost being late! I got lost…"

"Sayaka?"

I look over to see Junko staring at her with a smile on her face. "It _is_! Hi~!"

Sayaka immediately perks up. "Junko!" She runs over and gives the model a hug. "How are you? I haven't seen you since the interview!"

She waves her off. "Oh you know, been doing this n' that! I'm so glad to see you though! I didn't know that you were coming here!"

Sayaka giggles. "It was a last-minute thing really. I just finished up our last tour of the year, and I was so surprised to find out that I got invited here! The other girls were a little jealous, but they wished me luck anyway!"

Everyone in the room including myself is staring at the two girls with surprise written on their faces, Mukuro included.

"Junko, you know each other?" She asks, quickly recovering.

"U-huh!" She nods, smiling at her sister. "While you were away this gal and I did a couple of photo shoots together! My agency was actually trying to recruit her, but she turned them down."

"I had to!" Sayaka says, blushing slightly. "I'm nowhere near as pretty as you are, and I would have had to leave my idol group! You know that's been my dream since forever!"

Shriabe clears his throat. "If you girls don't mind, I'd like to get started with class now."

They separate, and I head over to my desk between Mukuro and Mondo. He grins at me in greeting, and I offer him a shaky smile back, plopping down in my desk.

"Alright, first thing's first. Junko, do you have anything to say to the class?" She nods and stands, heading to the front of the class.

"You all… I just wanted to apologize for my awful behavior on Friday." She frowns, tearing up slightly. "I was under a lot of stress, and I just… snapped. I feel so, so bad for how I acted… can you please forgive me?"

"If you don't mind me saying…" Kyoko says, eyeing up the model. "That didn't seem to really be a one-time thing, if how Mondo acted around you was any indication."

She bites her lip. "W-Well, when he and I knew each other, I was going through a bit of a wild streak… I don't blame him for acting how he did towards me. A little bit of that sort of… showed up that day."

Kyoko is clearly unconvinced, but she stays quiet. I glance back to see Mondo seething.

"I-It's not worth it." I whisper, looking back at him. But he doesn't listen.

"Oh yeah? And why the hell should anyone here believe that you're _not_ like that?" He sneers, glaring at the girl.

"Because I can attest to it!" Sayaka says, turning to look at him. "I'm not really sure what happened, but the Junko I know isn't cruel at all! I don't doubt that she did what she did because she was under stress, the business we're in can be really draining!"

Mondo still appears pissed, but he bites his tongue, apparently not wanting to get into a fight with the girl. Kyoko doesn't share his reservations.

"Oh? So you don't think that she could have been dishonest with you about how she really is? I've heard that being two-faced was common in the entertainment industry." Sayaka visibly stiffens, but doesn't back down.

"No, I don't doubt her!" She says with a huff. "We spent a long time working together, and I can say with full confidence that she's one of the nicest people I've met!"

Kyoko raises an eyebrow. "But you aren't aware of what she did to Chihiro, correct?" Sayaka finally goes quiet, looking off to the side. "I had thought so. You really shouldn't say anything unless you know the whole situation."

Junko takes this opportunity to comment. "I understand your doubts, really I do, but Chihiro and I have already smoothed things over!" She cheers, smiling over at me. _"Right_ Chihiro?"

I grimace slightly, before quickly plastering on a smile. "…Y-Yes, we have."

She turns back to the rest of the class. "See? So if she found it in her heart to forgive me, don't you all think that you can too?"

A wave of murmurs erupts from the class, Leon being the first to speak.

"Eh. I think we should give her a second chance." He says, scratching his head. "They already worked it out, right? So there's no issue."

"I agree!" Taka yells. "People make mistakes! Let us start fresh once again and get to know our dear classmate!"

With various affirmative answers rising from the class, Junko smiles in triumph. "Thank you… thank you all for being so kind!"

I bite my lip to keep the scowl I feel coming off of my face as Shirabe directs her back to her seat. I hated having to lie like that, but… I'm too scared to find out the consequences if I disobey her. I glance back and see that Mondo absolutely livid, and Kyoko doesn't appear to be exactly pleased either.

"Alright guys, quiet down." Shirabe says with a sigh. "Now that that's out of the way, I'm going to explain your classes to you. Take out your schedules."

I quickly pull out my e-Handbook and pull up my schedule, noting that there are seven individual classes.

"Each class you have is forty-five minutes long." Shirabe starts, motioning to the times he scribbled up on the board. "The only exception is the twenty minute homeroom period you have at the end of the day, where you'll all meet up here. The class you're in right now is English Grammar and Composition. You'll basically be reading books and writing essays in here."

There's a collective groan from the class from all but a select few, myself included. I don't have any problems in this kind of subject as long as I can type my essays.

Shirabe smirks. "That's exactly the kind of reaction I was expecting." He pushes up his glasses. "But, you all haven't heard my little exemption clause yet."

"Exemption clause…?" Hina says, a little more than confused.

"Right." Shirabe says, writing the words in chalk behind him and then underlining them. "Anyone wanna take a stab and see if you can figure out what I mean by it?"

Byakuya snorts. "It means that there's a way for us to get out of doing assignments, correct?"

"Bingo." He says, leaning on the podium. "I'm not a huge fan of grading work, and I'm pretty sure most of you aren't fond of doing a bunch of it… so I've come up with this little rule that can work well for both of us."

"W-Which is…?" I ask, a little afraid of what it might be.

"I'm glad you asked little lady!" He says, smirking at us. "After every lesson I teach, I'll give you all a ten-question quiz over the material. If you get at least nine of the ten answers correct, you won't have to do that week's assignment if you don't want to."

Hiro raises his hand. "Isn't grading a quiz work?"

"It is if you don't have machines to grade quizzes like we do." He says with a wink.

Hina raises her hand. "What do you get to do if you are exempt then?"

He shrugs. "I don't care. Sleep, eat, study for another class, goof off… as long as it's not bothering the people who have to do work, you're free to do whatever. Shit-, I mean shoot, you can even leave after checking in with me if you want to."

Leon narrows his eyes. "What's the catch?"

"No catch." Shirabe assures. "I get how you kids could be confused about this, but you all must have realized by now that this school isn't entirely… conventional. Things won't be entirely different of course, but our methods certainly are."

"_No kidding." _I think with a huff.

He continues. "Anyway, today is still gonna be that general first day stuff that you'll have to deal with. They'll explain your schedule over and over, go over the rules, and then they'll go over what's expected in their respective class." He sighs. "We don't like it any more than you do, but it's what has to be done. Regulations and all that noise."

He walks back over to his desk and flops down. "Right, so now comes the school rule part. Everyone take out your handbooks!" We all do so with a groan. "Hey, I don't like it any more than you do! Now, are there any rules that someone doesn't understand?"

Taka raises his hand. "I don't understand the point of most of these! For example, why do rules two, three, and four all end with "without proper reason"? What could possibly be a proper reason to do any of those things!?"

Shirabe snorts. "It's a case by case thing, and it's open to interpretation. Lemme give you an example… Let's say someone's stuck in a room, and there's no other way to get them out besides smashing the door. I'd call that a proper reason to destroy school property, wouldn't you? Next!"

Mukuro is next to raise her hand. "Has the eleventh rule been used a lot? It would seem that some of these rules are a little… out there."

He nods. "Yeah… basically from rule five down are all additions, with the exception of rule ten. It's only at the bottom because it's more of a… free time type thing."

"About that…" Sakura says after raising her hand. "Why is it that they allow us to do such a thing here? It seems a little unfitting for such a prestigious school."

"You guys are teenagers." He shrugs. "You'll have your urges. Just know that there are condoms available in the nurse's office if you do decide to."

Kyoko is next to raise her hand. "Are these the only things we can get in trouble for? If so it seems a bit… lax."

"Nah." He says, scratching his chin. "I can't really speak for other people, but if a teacher has a legitimate reason for issuing a detention then it doesn't have to be a rule violation. Alright, who's-" The bell suddenly chimes, cutting him off. "Oh, right. We're running a half schedule today. Dismissed!"

A little surprised at the abrupt end of class, I quickly stuff my belongings in my laptop bag.

"Ey, Chihiro."

I whirl around to see Mondo looking down at me. "Mind if I talk to ya a sec?" I nod, and he motions for me to follow him. Once we're safely out in the hall, he turns to me and crosses his arms. "Alright, spill."

I stare at him for a second in confusion. "What?"

"You told everyone you and that blonde psycho were all good. What the fuck possessed you to say somethin' like that?"

I bite my lip and look off to the side. "W-Well, she came to me and apologized-"

"And you forgave her just like that?" He says, giving me a hard look. "I don't buy it for a damn minute."

"S-She seemed sincere when she came by this morning…" I say, not wanting to make eye contact with him.

"And you fucking believed her!?" He yells, smacking his forehead. "You really think someone who just snapped like that would even-"

A cool voice breaks in, cutting him off. "If you don't mind me intruding on your conversation…" I turn around to see Kyoko looking at us with an impassive face. "I'd like to say that it's pretty obvious that she didn't really apologize to Chihiro at all."

He raises an eyebrow, outwardly irritated that he was cut off. "Oh yeah? And what makes you believe that?"

"It's pretty obvious by her behavior don't you think?" She says, walking up to us. "Not to mention that I caught that look that passed over your face before you said it." She glances to me. "If I had to take a guess, I'd say she threatened you into saying that. Am I wrong?"

I gulp. Bull's eye.

She nods. "It seems my suspicions were confirmed."

"Hold the fucking phone!" Mondo says, surprised. "How the hell did you figure all that out by jus' watchin' her!?"

"It comes with the trade." She says simply.

He turns to me, expression suddenly shifting into one of concern. "…So did she really fucking do that?"

I take a shaky breath and nod. "I-It was really surprising… her personality kept shifting while she was talking, and…" I sigh. "S-She said if I didn't say that I forgave her for what she did, she'd make me regret the day I was born."

"…" He grimaces. "I shoulda figured it was somethin' like that… I'm really sorry about layin' into ya like that."

I wave him off. "I-Its fine, really! I was just afraid to say it because… w-well, you know."

"If you don't mind me saying though…" Kyoko says, looking at me. "I'd say that you're still probably going to have issues with her."

"W-What?" I clutch my skirt. "But I did what she asked-"

"And that's the problem." She says with a frown. "You've shown that you're afraid of her. There's no doubt in my mind that she's not going to let you go just like that."

"I-I see…" I manage after a moment of silence. I feel tears forming in the corners of my eyes. "I should have figured that out on my own... B-Bullies don't just leave you alone." My gaze drifts to the floor, and a few tears manage to leak out. "I c-can't believe this is happening again…"

A few beats of silence pass between us before I feel a hand land firmly on my shoulder. I look up to see Mondo grinning at me.

"You don't have anything to worry about."

My eyebrows practically shoot up to my hairline. "W-What…?"

"You heard me!" He points a finger to himself. "If you stick by me then she won't have a chance to bug ya, right? She may be bat-shit crazy, but she's not dumb enough to get involved with me again!"

"Really? Are you sure?" I ask, frowning up at the gang leader. "I really don't want to bug you with something like this…"

He simply shakes his head. "Ya won't be bugging me. I told ya, we're friends!" He grins again and ruffles my hair. "I'm not gonna let my ladybro be pushed around by anyone! I promise ya that!"

I stare at him for a moment and simply take in his words before I beam up at him. "T-Thank you… thank you so much Mondo!"

He flushes slightly and scratches his cheek. "Y-Yeah, no problem! I got your back!"

"I'd like to offer my assistance as well." Kyoko says, nodding at me. "You and Mondo can't be together all the time, so if she attempts to do anything, I'd like you to come to me. Chances are I'll be better able to handle it than the school authorities will."

I nod. "R-Really Kyoko?" She nods. "Alright… I will. Thank you both so much!" She cracks the smallest of smiles and nods, turning away.

"Now that that's settled, let's go. We're going to be late for the next class."

* * *

><p>I flop down on my bed once I get back to my room with a sigh. Shirabe wasn't kidding when he said it would be repetitive…<p>

I pull out the little folded piece of paper I had scribbled notes on. Shirabe wasn't the only one to have strange practices for teaching as it turns out. I quickly scan the list, making sure I didn't miss anything.

**English Comp.: Exemption Clause**

**Math: Lets us do all work in Calculators**

**History: Nothing special.**

**Chemistry: Teacher lets people borrow equipment and chemicals with permission. Lunch After this class.**

**Art: No assignments; "just make art."**

**Phys. Ed.: Class done with the upperclassmen.**

**Homeroom**

Sixth period was by far the biggest surprise to me. I was completely floored when I walked in the gym and saw the upper classmen standing there!

_-Flashback-_

_I push open the doors to the gym and sigh. Even though today wasn't hard, not getting to sleep until three a.m. was starting to catch up with me. I trudge into gym, hoping that the teacher would at least be brief…_

"_Chihiromon!"_

"_Hey, Chihiro!"_

_My neck snaps up when I hear my name being called by two equally enthusiastic voices. I see both Ibuki and Souda flailing their arms to get my attention. I offer them a small wave, but Ibuki won't let me leave it at that._

"_C'mere c'mere!" She screeches, attracting everyone's attention. Not wanting to stand out more than necessary, I quickly trot over to where they're standing._

"_H-Hey guys!" I say, smiling at the two of them. "What are you two doing here?"_

"_Uh, dur?" Souda says, grinning at me. "We're here for gym class obviously!"_

"_E-Eh?" I squeak, a little confused. "You're in our class?"_

_Hajime walks over and stands next to Souda, offering me a smile in greeting. "I guess no one explained how gym works here, did they?"_

_I shake my head. "N-Not really…"_

_He shrugs. "Since there aren't many people here, they just sorta put our classes together. The class above ours doesn't have to take gym anymore, so now we're paired with you guys."_

_I nod slightly. "I guess that makes sense…" Souda glances over me to survey my class._

"_Huh, so these are the guys we're gonna nail this year…" He snarks, saying it a lot louder than necessary. "Can't wait to put you newbies in your place!"_

_Mondo flips him off. "You fuckin' wish Souda! I'll wipe the floor with ya!"_

_Souda flinches and pulls his hat down. "Aw dammit! I forgot he was in your class…!"_

_Ibuki laughs, punching the mechanic in the arm. "Silly shark! There's only one class!"_

_Hajime laughs as well, but it's a lot more mean spirited. "You know it's bad when Ibuki knows better than someone." He whispers, shaking his head._

_A whistle blows, making us all jump. A large man with fiery red hair yells out to us. "Alright guys, line up with your own class!"_

_Ibuki huffs. "Aww man! I didn't get to chat with ChiChi at all!"_

_I smile at her, patting her shoulder. "We can hang out later, alright?" I turn away to go back to my own class, but stop for a moment to wave at Gundham, who's standing off to the side with Sonia. He looks surprised, but nods at me in acknowledgement regardless._

_Once I'm back in line, Mondo looks down at me a little confused. "Since when did you get all buddy-buddy with them?"_

_I can only laugh. "Y-You know… I'm not too sure."_

* * *

><p>The saddest part is that I really <em>don't<em> know. The people from their class that I've interacted with have all been pretty nice… and I feel a lot more comfortable talking with some of them than certain people in my own class.

"_I feel like the reason I may be so comfortable with all of them is because they're already all so comfortable with each other." _I muse, looking up at the ceiling. _"I really hope that we can get to that point too… at least some of us." _

I kick my shoes off, deciding not to worry about it too much. I quickly burrow under the covers of my bed, ready to fall into a deep sleep after a boring day.

_*Bzzt! Bzzt Bzzt! Bzzt Bzzt Bzzt Bzzt!* _

"Come on Chihiromon! Op-en the do-or! You said you'd hang out with Ibuki!"

…

Or not.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Wow, this was hard for me to crank out. But, it was a necessary transition chapter! Now I can start writing something actually plotty... I hope. :v**

**I gotta tell you guys though, I'm sorta loving the Gundham stuff I'm writing in here. They're just so cute together!**

**I hope to get a little more fluffy parts in with some other characters, because I feel like I'm sorta playing favorites at this point. xp Anyway, thanks for putting up with my erratic updates and sorta bad storyboarding! See y'all next time!**


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